Five Have Plenty of Fun In Peterswood
by DraconisNight
Summary: Five Find-Outers/Famous Five crossover. Staying in Peterswood, the Famous Five encounter Fatty & his friends. With these two gangs of super sleuths, a mystery is sure to crop up! Throw in a little romance, Ern & an irritated Goon, and watch the fun ensue!
1. Chapter 1

It was a fine, sunny morning; warm, breezy and peaceful. Just the sort of day P.C. Theophilus Goon enjoyed the most. He sighed to himself, as he stretched languidly in the chair next to the open study window. The window faced onto the main high street of Peterswood, and from here, Goon prided himself on being able to see all that there was to see. Today however, nothing in particular at all appeared to be going on. And that was the way Goon liked it. It had been exactly the same for the past month or so, ever since a particularly warm and stifling summer had settled in. There had been no burglaries, no fires, no kidnappings, no crimes, no peculiar goings-on whatsoever lately. The most interesting case Goon had had reported to him in the past week was the missing cat of Mrs. Elderidge two doors down; even that had wandered back home the very next day. Peterswood seemed to be completely at peace; still and quiet. This would have been utterly frustrating for any policeman with a thirst for solving crime and a passion for his duty; P.C Pippin, Goon knew, belonged to this sort. But he, Theophilus Goon, was not a young, eager youth, desperate for a juicy case to crop up in order to receive praise from the Superintendent. He was wise enough and experienced enough to know that as soon as something fishy sprung up, he would be first on the scene. He didn't need to wander about, aimlessly looking for dead end clues and suspects for a crime that hadn't yet been committed, especially in this heat; he was a serious officer, and he would conduct his duty as such, by waiting for a suitably interesting case in a calm, professional manner. It seemed to Goon that a nice, undisturbed few hours' of rest would be a capital way of going about this.

Just as he was settling down more comfortably in his chair, the telephone bell rang out, shrill and loud. Goon groaned and heaved himself upright; stifling a yawn with the back of his hand, he picked up the receiver, inwardly cursing it for ringing at such an inconvenient time.

"P.C Goon," he answered, wearily, certainly not in the mood for professional calls. If it was Mrs. Elderidge about her cat again, he would jolly well hang up right away!

"Hallo, Goon!" a familiar, business-like tone spoke from the other end of the line. Goon snapped into attention straight away; it wouldn't do to appear lazy and sluggish in front of Superintendent Jenks!

Clearing his throat, Goon at once put on his most polite and agreeable tone. "Good morning, Superintendent. What an unexpected surprise! Do you have a case to report to me, sir?"

"No, Goon. Nothing of the sort," Superintendent Jenks replied, much to Goon's relief. It was far too warm to be doing any real sleuthing anyway! "I called to remind you that, as is customary given the time of the month, it is fairly safe to assume that Peterswood will see an increase in crime in the next few weeks or so. Now, you are a capable officer, Goon, of that I am well aware. However, there has been many a time when you have, er... fallen below the belt a bit. See that you do not sink into the same traps this time, Goon".

Goon nodded hesitantly, cringing slightly at the Superintendent's words. He was however, very puzzled. An increase in crime? Just how was the Superintendent able to guarantee such a change?

"Pardon me, sir," Goon stuttered, at a loss to understand. "Why exactly is it that you predict an increase in crime?"

"Why, Goon!" the Superintendent chuckled. "Surely you of all people, should not be confused by that! Today is the last day of the school term. By tomorrow afternoon, Master Frederick Trotteville and the other 'Find-Outers' will have returned home for the holidays. You know as well as I do how a crime always seems to crop up when those five are about! As intelligent as they are however, Goon, they are not members of the police force. I shall expect you to up your game a little, should a 'mystery', to use Master Trotteville's own word, suddenly pop up. Do I make myself clear?"

Goon was so speechless after hearing the Superintendent's words that he almost forgot to reply. "Yes, sir," he managed, weakly. "Goodbye, sir". Though the Superintendent rung off, Goon sat in the same spot, still clutching the receiver as though for support.

When those blasted kids had first gone off back to school a few months ago, he had been smug and gleeful, glad to see the back of them. He had welcomed his duty without them; it had been almost blissful to wander about on his beat without almost bumping into them at every corner. It had caused Goon even more pleasure to be able to ride his bicycle about the village without being knocked off of it by Frederick Trotteville's tiresome, snappy dog. Yet somehow, as time had progressed, Goon had quite forgotten about those five children. The undisturbed peacefulness of the summer had slipped by without a single reminder that they would soon return, no doubt bringing with them a nice, meaty case. And Superintendent Jenks seemed quite certain that there would be one as soon as they arrived back in Peterswood; he believed that he, Goon, needed to 'up his game' in order to solve it before the Five Find-Outers did. Bah! Five Find-Outers indeed! It was such a silly name, Goon thought. And they were silly children, always poking their noses in where they were not wanted! Always sending off he, Goon, on the wrong track whilst they did all the discovering!

Goon snorted out loud at this point. He was so wrapped up in his thoughts of the Five Find-Outers and all those times that they had come out on top, which were extremely painful to recall, that he almost jumped out of his skin when the telephone bell rang out again. Going to answer the call, Goon noted with some surprise that he was still holding the receiver; really, he would have to keep his mind from wandering so far from his job!

"P.C. Goon," he repeated. Surely this could not be the Superintendent again!

"Oh, er... hallo, Uncle," came the nervous reply. "It's me, Ern."

"Ern!" Goon replied, incredulously. Whoever he might have expected had he had time to ponder upon it, he would never have thought of his nephew, Ern!

"Yes, Uncle," said Ern. There was a few seconds' silence.

"Well, what is it, Ern?" Goon prompted, slightly exasperated at Ern's lack of conversation. The boy surely hadn't rung him up just to stand there in silence! The more he thought of this idea however, the more likely it seemed to him. That was just the sort of thing Ern might do to aggravate him!

"I was wondering, Uncle, whether I mightn't, er... come and stay with you for a bit?" Ern proposed, awkwardly. "You see, Sid and Perce were taken ill halfway through the term and mother wrote to me saying that they aren't any better. She suggested I stay with you for a bit; she said she was going to write to you herself in the next few days, but I thought I'd better ring up just to make sure it was all right". Ern had rushed his way through this speech, and now fell silent. Goon knew Ern was slightly scared of him and he approved. It was good and healthy to have a bit of fear in such a relationship.

"Well, er... yes, Ern. You come along and stay with me," Goon replied, doing his very best to seem hearty and cheerful.

"Oh, thanks awfully, Uncle!" said Ern, gratefully. "I shan't be any trouble. I shall get the first train tomorrow and be along in the afternoon. Goodbye!" Before Goon could say any more, Ern had rung off, no doubt before his uncle could change his mind.

Goon replaced the receiver and leant back in his chair, sighing. To think he had woken up this morning content and at peace with the world! And now all that would be ruined by this time tomorrow! By then, the Five Find Outers would be back, spreading mischief and mayhem wherever they went. And they'd be encouraging young Ern again before long. He, Goon, would be the one trying to stamp out the nonsense those five young rascals filled poor Ern's head with! At once, he wished he hadn't agreed to let him stay. Ern would be a nuisance, that was for sure! But Goon was very fond of Ern deep down, and would never have refused to help the boy.

Gazing out of the window at the still, peaceful high street, Goon decided to savour the remainder of his last morning of serenity by putting Superintendent Jenks, Ern and the Five Find-Outers to the very back of his mind; letting his eyes close thankfully, he indulged himself in the very thing Theophilus Goon loved best - a restful doze.


	2. Chapter 2

"I say, Dick!" Julian came flying into the dormitory, clutching a letter in his hand. "I've just received this letter from Aunt Fanny!"

Dick stood up from the trunk he had been packing, and turned to look at his brother, startled by the way he had come running into the room. "What does it say, Ju?"

"We can't go to Kirrin as planned," Julian replied, scanning the letter once more. "Aunt Fanny says they've had a series of frightful storms this past week or so. You know how strong the storms there can be".

Dick nodded in agreement. "Remember when one sent that old tree crashing into the roof of Kirrin Cottage?" he recalled.

"That's what Aunt Fanny's afraid of, something similar happening again," Julian replied. "She says here they've already lost several roof tiles to the gale. She doesn't want to put us in any danger. And it's so swelteringly hot that the weather forecast isn't due to improve for a week or so".

"Blow!" Dick cried, sinking down onto his bed. "What are we going to do? We can't go home, Mother and Father won't be back from Scotland for another fortnight. And I say, if we can't go to Kirrin, then the girls won't be able to either!"

"I'd thought of that," Julian nodded. "The best thing is to get in touch with them, and work out what we're to do. We can easily go off by ourselves again; after all, we've done it plenty of times before. And we're older now, and better able to look after ourselves".

"Old enough not to get mixed up in some adventure or other, you mean?" Dick grinned.

"Exactly," Julian chuckled. "I propose we go somewhere peaceful and pleasant, but not too remote. Going to those lonely, deserted hills and lakes we've been to before is just asking for adventure".

"You're right, Ju," Dick agreed. "But I don't think another adventure would be too unpleasant. I miss the clue-hunting and map-reading, don't you?"

Julian hesitated. "Yes, I do. But I'm seventeen now, Dick. I'm too grown up for adventures. And so are you".

Dick sighed in reluctant agreement. "But where are we going to go? Nowhere near the coast, that's clear".

"I'm sure we'll think of something," said Julian.

The door of the dormitory swung open, and in came one of the boys' dorm mates, Larry Daykin, carrying a cricket bat.

"Are you not all packed yet?" Larry asked, looking surprised to see the boys with trunks that were only half full. "I thought you were leaving early to catch the train to Kirrin".

"There's been a change of plan," Julian replied. "What are you doing with that bat?"

"I almost left it behind again," Larry grinned. "It's my friend Fatty's, I borrowed it some while ago. Keep forgetting to give it back".

Julian and Dick smiled back at him; they had heard many an account of Fatty, and knew all about him and the adventures Larry too had had.

"Where are you heading off to, then?" Larry asked, setting the bat down beside him on his bed.

"We don't know exactly," Dick answered. "We were thinking of going off by ourselves again. Nowhere out of the way, though; we don't want to get ourselves mixed up in anything again. Perhaps a nice town or village, somewhere".

"You ought to come along to Peterswood, sometime," Larry suggested, half-jokingly. "It sounds just the sort of place you'd want. I couldn't guarantee you no mysteries though!"

Julian laughed and resumed packing his trunk, but Dick looked thoughtful. "I say, I don't think that's such a bad idea," he said, his eyes lighting up.

"You mean coming to Peterswood?" Larry responded, surprised.

"Yes," said Dick. "I mean, it's a pleasant place, so our mother always says. It's far away enough to feel like a holiday, it isn't on the coast, and we know you, Larry, so we shan't be amongst total strangers. What do you think, Julian?"

Julian hesitated. Although he had always heard of Peterswood as a friendly, respectable place, he knew why Dick had suddenly become so set on the prospect of venturing there; Larry and his friends had never had an adventure outside of the village. Julian knew that if he did consent to their going there, they might well still end up embroiled in something or other. Yet it was the only idea they'd got.

"All right," he sighed. "We'll give it a shot. I'll go and telephone to the girls, and tell them to get the next train to Peterswood. We can meet them there". He got up and left the room, his head full of mixed thoughts and feelings about the trip ahead.

"That's settled then," Dick grinned. "Thanks, Larry, old boy, for thinking up such a wizard idea!"

"Glad to help," Larry replied. "It'll be good to have you! I say though, where will you stay?"

"I hadn't thought of that," said Dick. "We could always hire a couple of tents and set up in a field somewhere. That would be easy enough".

"We've got one I'm sure we could lend you," Larry suggested. "And Fatty or Pip will have another. I know the ideal spot, as well - Petter's Field. It's fairly near our house and there's a little stream that runs through it."

"It sounds super!" Dick smiled, feeling excited. He had been strongly deflated when Julian had informed him that they would not be going to Kirrin, but the imminent trip to Peterswood had filled him with excitement once more. It was always nice to begin the hols, especially when you had somewhere new and exciting to go! And somewhere like Peterswood was bound to be exciting, after all the marvellous adventures Larry had had there. No doubt they would meet the other Find-Outers, and the infamous Mr. Goon that he had told them all about. And they may even get caught up in a mystery of their own. Dick didn't want to get his hopes up here; he knew Julian had adamantly given up on adventures altogether. Julian could be equally as stubborn as George when he wanted to be, and that was quite an accomplishment. He wouldn't take kindly to something strange cropping up, Dick knew for certain.

Although they had all grown up considerably since their last adventure, only Julian had undergone significant change. He was still as jolly and as witty as ever, but there was no child within him anymore; he had well and truly grown up, and was as sensible and mature as any adult Dick knew. He couldn't help but admire his brother for this, but Dick wished that a bit of the old Julian would return; the Julian who welcomed an adventure with open arms and always took command of it all. Dick secretly longed for another adventure, but he could not let Julian know of this; not when he was so insistent they'd outgrown all that. He was sure that the girls would agree with him though; George would always be more than willing to plunge headfirst into any action that arose, Dick was certain of that. And although Anne had always expressed reluctance whenever there was a whiff of something odd, Dick knew that she secretly loved a good bit of adventure as much as he did. Timothy, of course, was quite happy to go along with anything that the children did. As long as they were in the middle of an adventure, so would he be!

Dick began to wonder whether Julian would be quite so determined on staying away from adventure if one did happen to crop up in Peterswood. "After all," he thought, as he added the last few belongings to his trunk. "It's quite different when you're in the middle of one. Sometimes you just have to get on with it. Hopefully, old Ju will buck up before long. He's not quite an adult yet. And you can't be the Famous Five when there's only four of you. That wouldn't work. That just wouldn't work at all!"


	3. Chapter 3

There was quite a collection of children on the twelve o' clock train to Peterswood that afternoon. Julian, Dick and Larry together in the last carriage, Anne, George and Timothy together in the first, Daisy and Bets somewhere in the middle, Fatty near the front, Pip crammed into a corner of the second carriage and Ern wandering up and down the corridor because he had been hard pushed to catch the train at all, let alone find a seat.

Julian stared out of the window at the vibrant blur of green that was the countryside, as the train chugged merrily along. He had managed to contact the girls and they had been overjoyed to be going off to Peterswood, after the terrible blow of Kirrin. Julian supposed that they must be on the train somewhere, and had thought of suggesting that he and Dick go and look for them, but the carriage was packed with holidaymakers and other children returning from school; he could only assume it was equally busy all the way down. If so, it would be far easier to meet them on the platform. The problem of separation from Larry also arose from that plan of action; they certainly didn't want to lose him!

Despite his resignation from falling into adventure, Julian had to admit that he was rather excited about the hols ahead; it was always thrilling to go off and camp somewhere completely unknown, adventure or no adventure. Dick had been quite right to consider Peterswood; it was bustling and busy in the summer, so it wasn't as likely to boast any strange occurrences, and they were already acquainted with Larry. Julian thought it more than likely that they would become friendly with the rest of the Find-Outers as well. He was a polite, good-humoured boy and enjoyed meeting new people, especially those of his own age. And, Julian thought to himself, if they were busy making new acquaintances, they might well miss any signs of adventure floating about in the air. He found himself almost hoping that that would be what happened. Julian didn't know exactly when he'd started thinking like this, but he heartily wished the others would feel the same way; after all, they couldn't keep on having adventures their whole lives! They'd all have to grow up at some point! And he, Julian, was jolly well doing that now!

Dick risked a glance at Julian over the top of the book he had taken out of his trunk; although his intention had been to read, he couldn't seem to concentrate. After going over the same line six or seven times in succession, Dick gave up and took the opportunity to study Julian instead. It was quite plain that he was deep in thought; Dick only hoped that he wasn't thinking about the possibility of adventure. If he was, he would surely only be more adamant upon keeping out of one than ever should one arise. Dick couldn't understand what had prompted Julian's sudden change of heart, but he was determined for it not to last long; he resolved himself to keep a very close eye on his older brother these hols. A very close eye indeed!

Meanwhile in the front carriage, Anne and George were discussing the boys' sudden decision to go to Peterswood.

"Why do you suppose they suggested it?" Anne asked, patting Timmy on the head.

"Julian said it was something to do with a friend of theirs, who lives in Peterswood," replied George. "He was awfully vague on the telephone though; he didn't tell me anything about the arrangements once we get there. Only that we were to catch the first train to Peterswood".

"They must be on this train as well, George!" Anne cried, craning her neck to look around the carriage.

"I would have thought so," George replied. "But you may as well stop straining yourself, Anne. The train's far too busy to spot them."

Anne slumped back down into her seat, recognising that George was right. They would never be able to find Julian and Dick with so many people about! "It's a dreadful shame we can't go to Kirrin these hols," she sighed. "I was looking forward to bathing in the sea again. It would have been even lovelier in this heat!"

George nodded. "Julian said that it was quite a bit of luck this Larry boy mentioned Peterswood. Otherwise we'd have been wandering about the country with nowhere specific to go".

"Good for Larry, I say!" cheered Anne.

At that moment a face appeared beside her, as the person in the seat behind turned to look at them. It was a jolly face, brown and cheerful. Anne liked it at once.

"Excuse me," said the boy to whom the face belonged. "I couldn't help overhearing your conversation. You wouldn't be talking about Larry Daykin, would you?"

"I couldn't say," replied George. "We don't know him, you see. He's a boy at my cousins' boarding school. He recommended Peterswood to us".

The boy nodded. "It sounds like Larry, all right. But of course, there are quite a few of those about. I live in Peterswood, too. I say, is that your dog? He's a marvellous looking fellow!"

He got up to pat Timmy, who had wagged his tail immediately as he heard the boy referring to him. The girls saw that he was a rather tall boy, slightly stocky and with a shock of sandy hair that was neatly parted. Timmy began licking him, and George smiled warmly. She had been pleased at his compliment, and it was clear that Tim had taken to him immediately. And if Timmy took to somebody, then George always took to them too!

"Sit down, won't you?" she indicated the two empty seats beside them.

"Thanks," said Fatty, sitting down beside Anne. "Pleased to meet you. My name's Frederick Trotteville". He held out a hand to George.

"George Kirrin," she replied, shaking it. "And this is my cousin, Anne".

"Hallo, Anne!" Fatty smiled pleasantly, as he shook hands with Anne. She thought him a very nice, well-mannered boy indeed! "George is an odd sort of name for a girl," he remarked, turning back to her with a twinkle in his eye.

George found herself going red; she had grown up a lot these past few years and no longer looked so like a boy as she had once done, much to her dismay. She was still very much a tomboy, however.

"It's short for Georgina," explained Anne, suppressing a giggle as she noticed how red George had turned. "But George hates being called that. She'd much prefer to have been a boy".

"That's rather a shame," replied Fatty with a grin. "But George suits you rather well, I think".

George grinned back at him, and felt her face colouring again. Anne's eyes widened in surprise; if she was not very much mistaken, her tomboyish cousin George was blushing! That was certainly a turn up for the books!

"What made you decide to take up Larry's suggestion and come to Peterswood, then?" asked Fatty.

Anne began to tell him about the storms at Kirrin, and how Julian had rung up to suggest this new plan of action. George, meanwhile, remained silent, only nodding now and then to indicate that she was listening to the conversation. She was actually rather worried about how she had felt when Fatty had complimented her name. It had given her a sort of warm, peculiar feeling inside her stomach, and she didn't like the thought of it one bit. George had heard the other girls at school describing a similar feeling; she had heard one girl describe it as a 'crush'. This made George feel very angry indeed; it was silly of her to feel this way! If she was a boy, she wouldn't have this strange feeling building up in the pit of her stomach! It was a silly, silly feeling and George was determined to ignore it as best she could. Making up her mind that the peculiar feeling might as well not be there at all, as far as she was concerned, she joined in the conversation Anne and Fatty were having, as the train chuffed onwards towards Peterswood.


	4. Chapter 4

When the train pulled in, the children alighted respectively onto the crowded platform, each manouevring a heavy trunk through the throngs of people milling about, attempting with difficulty to get both on and off of the train.

George and Anne at once made for the entrance to the station, still accompanied by Fatty, who had offered to carry Anne's hatbox for her. Julian had directed them to wait by the door on the telephone earlier that morning, in case there was any difficulty in regrouping on the platform. He had been right to suggest such a plan, Anne thought as she was jostled backwards not for the first time. Dear Ju really did think of everything! She was quite beside herself with joy at the prospect of seeing her two brothers again! Three months didn't seem such a long time in the hols when they were all together, but how dreadfully the time dragged when they were apart!

Fatty followed the girls, skilfully dodging anybody who looked as though they might walk directly into him with an agility that anyone who knew Fatty would not be surprised to learn he possessed. He was rather hoping the other Find-Outers would have the sense to make for the entrance, as well. Failing that, he would soon catch up with them when they were the only four left on the platform!

No sooner had the three of them reached the station door when Julian, Dick and Larry strolled up, each looking slightly short of breath. Timmy, who had not enjoyed the sensation of wading through the crowd, went mad at the sight of his two faithful friends and leapt upon them at once!

"Hallo, Tim!" cried Julian, quite unprepared for the frantic welcome and slightly amused at the way Timmy appeared to want to lick both boys at once. "Hallo, Anne! Hallo, George! You both look well!"

"So do you!" Anne smiled, allowing herself to be hugged by Dick.

"You've grown again, young Anne," Dick observed, as he turned to give the same treatment to George. "You seem to get taller every time we see you!"

Larry and Fatty, who had retreated back a step or two rather awkwardly, not wishing to be in the way of this joyful reunion, greeted each other with a warm handshake. It wasn't long before Pip had sidled up beside them, his hair tousled from his doze on the train. Daisy and Bets soon joined the group, Bets giving a loud shriek at the sight of Fatty and flinging herself upon him in a tight embrace.

"Oh, Fatty! I've missed you!" she cried, positively beaming. Bets, although thirteen now and almost grown up in her own opinion, was still very much the baby of the five. Her profound fondness and admiration for Fatty hadn't lessened any over the past few years, and he was still much of an inspiration to her.

"Nice to know how much you've missed your own brother," scoffed Pip, slightly irritated at his lack of welcome. His annoyance soon abated however when Bets flung herself upon him next, apologising profusely.

There was a slight pause between both groups as the welcoming of their numbers subsided; Julian and Larry turned almost simultaneously as each remembered the other was still there.

"Why don't you introduce us to your friends, Larry?" Julian grinned, strolling over to the other five, with Dick in hot pursuit.

And so the introductions began, though of course Anne, George and Fatty were already familiar; Find-Outers and Famous Five merged into one group, Timmy beside himself with joy at being surrounded by so many friendly faces, especially those of the four people he loved more than anyone else in the world! Each of the children was happy to be in Peterswood, with three long months before them and the sun beaming down, glorious and toasting their backs. Golly, how simply marvellous summer hols were!

There was however, one person who didn't quite make it into Peterswood. Poor Ern, who had finally managed to find himself a seat on the train, had made himself too comfortable and remained there sound asleep, as the train chugged out of the station. He didn't know that he had missed his stop, or that his beloved friends the Find-Outers were just yards away on the platform, or even that there was a big, black fly zooming frustratedly around his head; all Ern knew was that he was in a deep, blissful sleep and he jolly well didn't want to come out of it, thanks very much!

An hour later, Mr. Goon began his afternoon patrol of the village with more than a little reluctance. Ever since the phone call of yesterday morning, he had been in a decidedly bad mood; he snapped at Mrs. Cockles when she arrived to clean the house. He snapped at the police clerk who rung up to chase one of Goon's reports. He snapped at the newspaper boy, who was a redhead and reminded him forcibly of Fatty in one of his disguises. Today was one of those days when Mr. Goon snapped at everybody, for he was annoyed. Goon was annoyed that Mrs. Cockles always complained about his tattered window leather. He was annoyed that the clerk had lost last week's report on Mrs. Elderidge's cat. He was annoyed that the wrong newspaper had been delivered to his house, and that the boy who had made the mistake had red hair. But most of all, Goon was annoyed that there was no sign of Ern. Ern who had been so desperate to come and stay with him! Ern who had promised he would get the first train to Peterswood! Ern who had already made a nuisance of himself by breaking this promise!

'Gah!' muttered Goon, as he wandered down the high street. Looking ahead down the road, Goon spotted something that made him stop still. A little way off, he was able to spot those blasted kids as they crossed the street, their chatty, amicable voices carrying clearly on the still air. Ho! So they were back! There was Frederick Trotteville at the very helm of the party, strutting across the road in his usual cocksure manner. A manner which very nearly made Mr. Goon's blood boil just to think of it! And there were the Hiltons, young Bets hanging on Frederick's every word, as she always did. Mr. Goon didn't understand it. He thought Master Frederick Trotteville a very tiresome sort of person to idolise indeed! Predictably, the Daykin children followed on behind, accompanied by that irritating dog. But wait! Mr. Goon strained his eyes to see, as the children ambled further away; that was not the irritating dog he was used to! It was a dog, that was for sure, but it was not the snappy brute that loved to terrorise his ankles so! This dog was much bigger, and lighter in colour.

It was then that Mr. Goon spotted the figures of four other children following behind the Find-Outers, and he squinted against the blinding sunlight, doing his very best to make them out. They looked like three boys and a girl, and no doubt the dog belonged to them. So those pesky kids had found themselves four more pesky friends, had they! Well, they had jolly well better not disturb he, Goon, that was for sure!

At that moment, a rather disturbing thought crossed Mr. Goon's mind. What if one of those unfamiliar kids was actually one that he knew very well? What if one of the three boys he had spotted in the distance was actually Ern? It would be just like Ern to turn up in Peterswood and make straight for the Trottevilles' house, without so much as even informing his own uncle that he had arrived! Gah! The more Goon thought out this scenario, the more likely he thought it. It was exactly the sort of thing Ern might do to spite him! Well, he would show Ern! He would teach him a lesson about what happened to ungrateful, disrespectful young rascals!

"Hi! Ern! You stop right there!" bellowed Mr. Goon, as he followed this sudden impulse by tearing down the high street as fast as his legs would allow him, one hand steadying the police helmet on his head. He ignored the stunned passer bys and villagers who leapt out of the way in alarm at the furious policeman careering down the street after the Find-Outers; he didn't even stop to apologise as he knocked several of them down. All that Goon was focused on was getting hold of that there Ern and giving him exactly what he deserved - a good, hard shake!

"Ern! You come back here, Ern! I want a word with you!" Goon yelled, extremely red-faced and panting like there was no tomorrow. He was now within sight of the Find-Outers again and he wasn't going to let them slip away! They were in trouble too, for encouraging Ern, the young blighters!

"ERN!" hollered Mr. Goon once more, and a little way ahead the nine children and Timothy turned in surprise. "ERN! COME HERE AT ONCE! ERN!"

"Gosh, who's that?" Dick asked, bewildered. "And why is he addressing us as 'Ern'?"

"Why, it's Mr. Goon!" Fatty replied, a twinkle in his eyes. "He must be talking about his nephew! But why he should go around chasing us, I haven't the foggiest!"

The children stopped as Mr. Goon approached, now so out of breath that he could no longer shout without angering the tearing stitch in his side. He took instead to waving a large, pink fist around in what was evidently supposed to be a threatening manner.

"Mr. Goon! What a jolly pleasant surprise!" Fatty exclaimed, heartily. "It's been an awfully long time since we last saw you! I do hope you are keeping well!"

Goon, who could do nothing but pant as he drew up next to the children, turned even redder at Fatty's pleasantries. Damned insolent boy! What cheek he had to address he, Goon, in that manner when it was quite clear that he was not in the mood for polite conversation!

"Master Trotteville," Goon spat in acknowledgement, still gasping for breath. He paused again to survey the children in front of him, and experienced a dreadful sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach as he realised that neither of the three new boys was Ern. Why, if he was not very much mistaken, one of them was a girl!

Standing up straight and re-adjusting his collar in an attempt to look dignified, Goon opened his mouth to speak, but was beaten to it by Fatty.

"Lovely afternoon, isn't it, Mr. Goon? We were just taking a stroll back from the station with our new friends here," the boy indicated Julian, Dick, George and Anne and Mr. Goon scrutinised them once more, wondering if they could possibly be Ern dressed in some sort of clever disguise. After all, that dratted fat boy had taken him in more than once with one of his infamous disguises!

"Bah!" replied Goon, more steady in his speech now and certainly not in the frame of mind to deal with Frederick Trotteville's trivialities. "What have you done with Ern, boy? Ho! You tell me that! I know he's somewhere about!"

"Oh, so it _was _Ern you were shouting for!" Fatty remarked, feigning dawning comprehension. "Well, I quite agree with you Mr. Goon that it would be wonderful to have Ern with us. But I'm afraid he isn't here. We haven't seen him since last summer".

"Ho! That's what you say!" Goon retorted, his beady eyes narrowed. "Now you listen to me, I know you're hiding Ern somewhere and I'm going to find out where, see?"

"I really don't know what you're talking about," Fatty replied, airily.

"Gah!" exclaimed Goon. "I've had a nice, peaceful summer without you and your tall stories, Master Trotteville. Now you tell me what you've done with Ern!"

"I told you," replied Fatty, wearily. "We haven't seen him".

Ignoring this, Goon started down a new path. "You've come from the station, you say? Well, if you've come from the station, you would have met Ern, see?"

"And why is that?" replied Fatty, innocently.

Goon almost exploded with anger at the boy's tone of voice. How he wished he could give him a jolly good thrashing! "Because... because Ern got the first train to Peterswood!" he spluttered.

"We got the first train to Peterswood, sir," cut in Julian. "And there was no sign of him".

"We wouldn't have seen him, anyway," added George. "The platform was too crowded".

"I'm telling you the truth, Mr. Goon," Fatty said, earnestly. "We really haven't see him. Like I said, not since last summer".

"Last summer?" Goon repeated, still doubtful. He didn't want to believe these troublesome terrors, but he couldn't for the life of him see where Ern could have hidden himself were he with them. "You mean he hasn't been with you today, then?"

"No, Mr. Goon," replied Fatty, solemnly. "But we could have a look for him if you like. Perhaps he's hiding in these bushes here. Have a look, Pip, will you?"

To Mr. Goon's fury, Pip parted the leaves of the bush behind them and began rummaging around as though he had lost something. "Not here!" he grinned, emerging from the shrubbery. Bets' attempt to suppress a giggle failed dismally, and Goon turned to glare at her.

"Ho! I suppose you think you're funny, do you?" spat Goon. "Well, you tell me this then! If Ern got the first train to Peterswood this morning, where is he now? Hmm?"

"I couldn't say," Fatty shrugged. "Perhaps he's waiting at your house, Mr. Goon?"

"Perhaps he didn't get the train at all," Daisy suggested. "Perhaps he missed it".

Goon remained silent at this. He hadn't thought of that. It was damned well possible that Ern had missed the train. In fact, it was just like Ern! Mr. Goon kicked himself for not considering this eventuality. When Ern arrived, he would jolly well throttle him for allowing he, Goon, to humiliate himself in such a manner!

Goon coughed, and muttering something about 'important police duties', he excused himself as best he could. As he walked away, his head held high in a futile attempt at dignity, he cursed Ern under his breath. The dratted boy had caused him to make a fool of himself in front of those bratty annoyances once more! Goon was a serious officer, and didn't appreciate being made fun of. Ern would be well and truly for it when he finally decided to show himself, that was for certain! But where exactly was Ern? Where did he get to after he had fallen asleep? Why, he had stumbled into the start of an adventure, of course!


	5. Chapter 5

When Ern had awoken half an hour after his friends had alighted at Peterswood, he found to both his great astonishment and dismay that the train had pulled into Norville station. Ern's geography skills were by no means the best, but even he knew that Norville was quite a bit further on than Peterswood.

"Blast! I've missed my stop!" Ern cried, jumping up and hastily grabbing his belongings. He pushed his way through the people standing in the carriage and alighted onto the platform. Ern had absolutely no head at all for all this train-catching lark, but even he was sensible enough to realise that the appropriate thing to do was to get off as soon as possible and begin to enquire as to a way back.

After he had spoken with the pimply, bored-looking youth inside the station and had been told that a train to Peterswood would be along in just under half an hour, Ern strolled along to the other platform and sat down on a bench to wait. He couldn't help feeling rather proud of himself; he had been a damned fool to fall asleep on the train like that, there was no denying it, but he had kept calm and level-headed and had found a solution to the dilemma. Ern doubted the great Fatty himself could have been any more efficient at tackling this problem than he had been! Though of course, Fatty would never have been so fat-headed as to have fallen asleep in the first place, Ern reasoned.

Good old Fatty, thought Ern, as he leant back on the bench. It wouldn't be long before he was back in Peterswood and reunited with he and the other Find-Outers once more! And no doubt there would be a mystery, as there always was, with suspects and clues! And Fatty would be able to help him out with the latest poem Ern had found himself stuck with! Fatty had a way with words that nobody else possessed, Ern knew. It was a gift, that's what it was. A gift!

Ern chuckled to himself as he recalled the time that Fatty had written a very humourous poem about Mr. Goon, Ern's uncle. It had been jolly funny at the time, though they had all come to regret it when Goon had seen it in he, Ern's, notebook! Ern still had that very same notebook with him, there in his bag. He hadn't so much as glanced at it for a long time, but had thought to bring it with him just in case. It might come in very handy to write down clues and suspects. Fatty always said it was useful to write down everything about a person or object because you never could tell what he, she or it might be mixed up with!

Glancing up at the station clock, Ern saw that he still had twenty minutes of waiting before the train was due. Deciding that he had better get a bit of practise in if the Find-Outers were going to sniff out another of their famous mysteries, Ern pulled the notebook out of his bag. What better way to kill time than to do something that Fatty might consider? He, Ern, was going to write down everything he was able to notice about his fellow passengers! He might show it to Fatty later if he was able to be particularly sharp.

"Let's see," muttered Ern, digging deep inside his trouser pocket for a pencil he thought he remembered putting there. Ah, there it was! A little bit blunt, but it would do.

He glanced around the platform and couldn't help but feel disappointed. It was almost deserted save two men at the other end, on a bench similar to Ern's. They were sitting close together and talking with their heads bent, as though they didn't wish to be overheard. Ern sighed and was about to put his notebook back into the bag, when the significance of what he had just thought to himself dawned upon him.

It may be dull that there were so few people to write about, but it seemed to Ern that the two men on the platform were acting rather suspiciously, as Fatty would say. Ern couldn't quite see the logic in talking so discreetly when there was nobody around, save he at the very opposite end of the platform! That gave the impression that they were discussing something so important and top secret that they could afford to take no chances, surely? Feeling both surprised and pleased that such high levels of deduction could come from he, Ern, the boy began to write down what he could notice about his fellow peers on the platform.

"Man one: dark hair, beard, grey flannel suit, black shoes - a bit dirty, carrying briefcase,' Ern repeated, looking back over what he had scrawled rather haphazardly on the first clean page he could find. 'Man two: beige suit, beige hat, brown shoes - shiny, clean-shaven, carrying umbrella'. Not bad!"

Ern was really quite pleased with his descriptions; they were not quite so detailed and informative as Fatty's might have been, but they were certainly more than all right for a practise attempt. Ern began to scribble down a brief description of how the men were sitting, and how they appeared to be in the middle of an intense conversation. Once done, he sighed positively. There! He was as good a Find-Outer as any of the others, he thought! Now there was absolutely nothing to be done but to sit and wait for the train, and to keep an eye on those two fellows in the meantime!

When the train pulled in at the half hour on the dot, Ern got up and was walking towards the carriage door when a marvellous idea suddenly occurred to him. If Fatty was here and regarded somebody as suspicious, he would surely sit as close to them as possible on the train in order to hear and see everything that they said and did. So he, Ern, would do exactly that!

He waited for the gentlemen to get into the carriage at the far end of the platform before sprinting down and climbing in after them. They had just sat down in a corner at the far end when Ern got on; the carriage was fairly empty but the men did not notice Ern as he approached, so absorbed were they in arranging the briefcase so that they could both see it. Trying to be as quiet as possible, Ern sat down in a seat directly behind the one the man in the beige suit was occupying. He decided against stowing his luggage in the rack overhead; it would make too much noise and the last thing Ern wanted to do was to draw attention to himself. This meant it had to go on the seat beside him, and Ern was rather cramped for space. Still, that didn't matter now!

Feeling both excited and astonished that he possessed the intelligence to have been this clever, Ern leant his head against the window in case one of the men should turn around and he had to feign being asleep; he resolved to remain absolutely still and listen intently to everything they said.

"That's it," came a gruff voice from behind. Ern suspected that the man in the grey suit had spoken, for he felt that if it had been the other man, he should have heard the voice more clearly still, on account of him being closer.

"That's all Sluggy gave you?" replied his companion, sounding disappointed.

"That and the note," came the gruff voice again. "But I can't make head or tail of it".

"Let me have a look," said the second man. "I might be able to shed some light on the situation".

There was a few seconds' silence as Ern presumed the man in the beige suit was studying this mysterious note.

"It's useless!" said the second man, bringing his hand down on the table with a loud clap of agitation. "What's it supposed to mean?"

"I dunno," replied the first. "The first bit's Peterswood, for sure. As for the rest, your guess is as good as mine".

Both men fell silent at this, though Ern strained his ears for the slightest sound. After ten minutes of silence had passed, Ern couldn't help but feel slightly frustrated. He couldn't understand why the men no longer had anything to discuss. If this strange note was as unreadable as they proclaimed, he thought they ought to be putting their heads together once more to work out what it jolly well meant!

The train gave a lurch as it pulled in at Sheepsworth Station, and Ern felt another pang of disappointment. The next stop was Peterswood and he had yet to find out what the cryptic note meant! It was at that moment Ern heard something flutter to the ground, and peering under the seat saw a small piece of paper, obviously dropped by the man in the beige suit behind him. He picked it up and pocketed it deftly, before resting his head once more on the window and letting his eyes close.

When the train stopped at Peterswood, the men stood up; Ern opened his eyes and was about to get up as well when an exclamation from the man in the beige suit quickly made him resume his former position.

"Phil, the note! It's not here! I must have dropped it when the train pulled in!" the second man cried, and Ern could sense him peering under the seat behind.

"Well, it'll be on the floor then!" the first man replied.

"It's not here!" his companion exclaimed, standing up again.

"Perhaps that kid behind picked it up?" the man called Phil suggested. Ern shut his eyes tighter than ever as he heard one of the men come to stand beside him.

"He can't have, he's fast asleep," spoke the man in the beige suit from Ern's immediate left.

"Just leave it, it doesn't matter," said Phil, impatiently. "If we can't figure it out then neither can anyone else. We've got to get off, this is Peterswood".

Reluctantly, the man in the beige suit followed his companion out of the carriage, with one last sweeping look below his now vacant seat. Ern remained where he was, with his eyes shut until he thought the two men had had time enough to alight. Then with surprising speed and agility, he gathered together his belongings and dashed out of the carriage door as quickly as possible. The last thing he wanted was to be stuck on the train after the Peterswood stop again! Ern longed to follow the two men, who had now disappeared through the station door, as he knew Fatty would have done. But Ern knew how cross his uncle could be when it came to punctuality, and he most certainly didn't want to be on the receiving end of one of Goon's hardest, heavy-handed blows!

Ern began to make for his uncle's house, unable to think of anything other than the note that now lay in the pocket of his jeans. He longed to take it out and examine it, but he decided that that would be better left until he was safely inside Fatty's cosy shed with the other Find-Outers. Ern couldn't wait for the moment when he could present to Fatty all that he had heard on the train, and show him all that he had written in his notebook. It was too early to tell, Ern knew, but he hoped against hope that he had stumbled across a mystery. How delightful that would be, to know that he, Ern, had been the one to discover the fishy beginnings of a juicy mystery!

"Cor! Love-a-duck!" Ern exclaimed out loud, as he hurried down the high street, barely able to contain himself for excitement.


	6. Chapter 6

Apologies for leaving it so long! I know it's been well over a year, but that's the beauty of A-Levels, I'm afraid! The next few chapters might be a bit slow, until I can get back into the swing of things again. Please R & R, feedback is always appreciated!

Mr. Goon jerked awake as there was a loud knock at the front door. Really, he would have to keep himself from falling asleep in such hot weather! Goon waited a minute or so to see if Mrs. Cockles would answer it, but as the knocking resumed, he supposed she must have gone home whilst he'd been asleep. Heaving himself out of his armchair with a sigh, Goon went to the door, wondering who could be disturbing him at this hour.

His jaw dropped in surprise as he saw Ern on the doorstep, surrounded by his belongings. He had completely forgotten about his nephew in the hour or so he had been asleep! His surprise soon gave way to annoyance, however, when he remembered that Ern was late.

"Hallo, Uncle!" said Ern, cheerfully. His smile faltered when he noticed the frown on Mr. Goon's face, and he hurriedly stepped over the threshold, bag in hand, in case his uncle suddenly changed his mind and tried to shut the door in his face.

"Ho! What do you mean by turning up at this hour, young Ern?" said Mr. Goon, in the sternest voice he could muster. He shut the door behind them and turned to face his nephew, hands on hips in a foreboding manner.

Ern began to cower, wishing not for the first time that he hadn't been fat-headed enough to fall asleep. "I'm ever so sorry, Uncle, but I fell asleep on the twelve o'clock train. I had to get another one back from Norville, you see, and that was why I was so late!"

"Ho! You fell asleep, did you?" Mr. Goon said disbelievingly, still certain that Ern had spent the afternoon with the Find-Outers. "A likely story!"

"Y-yes, Uncle," stammered Ern, backing away slightly, for Mr. Goon seemed to swell angrily before him like a bullfrog. "Wh-where else would I have been?"

"O-ho!" Mr. Goon exclaimed, rocking backwards and forwards on the balls of his feet, pompously. "Where else? Why, at that fat boy's residence, that's where!"

"At Fatty's?" Ern repeated, looking bewildered. "B-but Uncle, I haven't been to Fatty's! I was just on my way there now, after I'd stopped off here!"

"Ho, I knew it! I said to myself just now that..." Mr. Goon paused, mid-sentence, looking surprised. He had expected Ern to admit going to the Trottevilles' and was completely thrown by this opposite answer. He drew himself up to begin on a new tack, when there was another knock at the door. Instructing Ern to go into the kitchen, where he would be 'dealt with later', Goon stomped off down the hallway to answer it.

Ern wasted no time. As soon as voices could be heard from the front of the house, he slipped out of the back door like a shot. Terrified that his uncle wouldn't believe him and would forbid him from going to Fatty's, he was taking no chances. If he didn't deliver that note to the Find-Outers and tell them all about his little adventure, he thought he might explode! He would worry about the consequences later!

When Mr. Goon returned shortly to the kitchen, he was astonished to find it completely empty. He called upstairs to see if Ern was there, but there was no reply. Going back into the kitchen, he noticed that the garden door was slightly ajar and began to scowl at it. So Ern had attempted to evade him, had he? Ern thought he could get away with his tardiness by slipping out when his uncle's back was turned, did he? Well, he would be waiting for Ern when he returned, that was for sure! And he would show him exactly what happened to disobedient young children!

"Gah!" said Goon, to emphasise the severity of this thought.

Ern ran all the way to Fatty's house as fast as his legs could carry him, glancing back over his shoulder every few feet in case his uncle had decided to follow him. He reached the garden gate and stopped, panting. He fumbled in his trouser pocket and brought out the rather crumpled note. Grinning with the prospect of seeing his old friends again, Ern went round to the back, the piece of paper grasped tightly in his hand. Coming round the corner, he saw them sitting on the grass with a jug of lemonade, chatting merrily. It seemed to Ern that there were twice as many Find-Outers as usual, and he rubbed his eyes to check whether he was seeing double. He suddenly felt a scratching on his leg, and removed his hands from his eyes to see Buster, wagging his tail and extending his paw to Ern in his usual polite manner.

"Why, it's Buster!" exclaimed Ern, joyfully. He reached out to shake the little dog's paw. "How do you do, old boy?"

By now, the other children had noticed Ern, red-faced but as jolly-looking as ever. Fatty gestured to him to join them on the lawn, and Bets leapt up to welcome him with a hug. Ern turned even redder at this, overjoyed to be welcomed as the old friend that he was.

"Hallo Ern!" said Fatty, clapping him on the back with a grin.

"I say, it's good to see all of you again!" beamed Ern, shaking hands with Larry and Pip.

"You have been to see your uncle, I suppose, Ern?" Larry said, thinking how like Ern it would be to keep Mr. Goon waiting all afternoon.

"Yes," said Ern, looking abashed. "He wasn't very pleased with me, I'm afraid. He accused me of being with you! So I slipped out of the back door when he wasn't looking, and came straight here."

"Gosh, Ern!" said Fatty. "That was very reckless of you! You'll be in awful trouble when you get home!"

Ern nodded ruefully. He knew full well that his uncle would be cross, but he was more worried about Fatty's disapproving tone. What if Fatty thought him an idiot? In a few seconds or so, however, he was speaking cheerfully once more and in the bright, confident manner that Ern always associated with him.

"He seemed ever so cross earlier when we saw him," said Daisy, playing with a twig by her foot.

"Golly, yes!" exclaimed Fatty, in agreement. "I really thought he was going to cart us all off back to the police station with him, he was so angry! He thought we were hiding you or something, though goodness knows where!"

"So that's why he was so certain I'd been with you!" said Ern, suddenly understanding his uncle's peculiar behaviour.

"It wasn't the best first impression of Peterswood for our new friends, I can tell you," said Fatty, by means of introduction. The four Kirrin children had remained silent up to this point, waiting to be introduced to the red-faced Ern. Timmy lay panting on the grass, beside Buster. Ern stared at them in surprise, having not noticed them properly. He had been so pleased to see the Find-Outers once more that they seemed to have eclipsed everything else!

"I'm Julian," Julian smiled, extending his hand to Ern. Ern shook it, looking bashful. He wasn't very confident when meeting new people at all! He then shook hands with the other three in turn, thinking how wonderful it was to meet other friends of Fatty's! He also shook hands with Timmy on George's prompting, and the introductions finally subsided.

Conversation had soon started up again when Ern started visibly, and his hand flew to his pocket. The others looked at him in alarm, startled by the sudden movment.

"What is it, Ern?" asked Pip, fighting back a laugh at the bewildered expression on Ern's face.

"I almost forgot," said Ern, suddenly remembering that he was still clutching the scrap of paper in his left hand. "I think I might have stumbled across a mystery, Fatty!"

All of the children sat up at once, excited and surprised to think that Ern might have come across something so soon. Dick chanced a glance at Julian, but his expression was just as attentive as the others'. He hoped this was a good sign.

"Well, do tell us, Ern!" Fatty prompted, impatient that Ern had paused. "If there's a mystery to be found, we all want to know at once!"

"I can do better than tell you, Fatty!" said Ern proudly, spreading out the note on the ground in plain view of everybody. "I can show you!"


	7. Chapter 7

The note read: "P-wood MAR 15 04, Jimbo". Each of the ten children stared blankly at the note, which looked as though it had been hastily scribbled. A few minutes passed as they tried to work out what it meant.

"Well, Fatty?" asked Ern excitedy, breaking the silence. He couldn't wait any longer to hear Fatty's opinion!

"It's no good, Ern!" Fatty replied, handing the note to Larry who scrutinised it more closely. He passed it to George and it continued around their circle. "I can't even begin to think until you've told us the whole story!"

Ern nodded eagerly, and cleared his throat. Of course Fatty would have to hear everything! He drew himself up importantly, in such an uncanny impersonation of Mr. Goon that Pip nudged Bets and they both fought back a laugh. Ern began to tell how he had fallen asleep on the train and had had to get another one back to Peterswood. He paused when he reached the part where he had written down detailed descriptions of the two men, hoping that Fatty might praise him.

"Jolly smart of you," Fatty nodded, and Ern blushed with delight. He continued with his story in a narrative so confident that he could hardly believe the words were coming from his own mouth! When he had finished, the Find-Outers looked at one another in surprise. The Famous Five also exchanged glances. How exciting that something had cropped up so soon!

"Do you have the descriptions with you?" asked Fatty. Ern's hands flew to his back pocket, where he often kept his notebook handy. Suddenly, he groaned with dismay.

"What's wrong?" asked Larry, immediately.

"My notebook! It's not here!" exclaimed Ern in panic. "I remember noticing it in my pocket when I arrived at Uncle's. It must have fallen out when I dashed out of the house. Gosh, I hope he hasn't found it!"

"Surely it wouldn't matter much if he has?" said Dick. "It's only a description of two ordinary-looking men, isn't it? They could be anyone!"

Ern groaned even more at this, and the others looked at him sharply.

"What is it now, Ern?" asked Fatty, rather impatiently. It was extremely frustrating to have finally found a mystery, and to have lost most of the information they had to go on!

"I made another copy of the note I found in the notebook, just in case I lost this one," explained Ern, miserably. The Find-Outers groaned in unison. The Famous Five looked rather disappointed. They didn't quite understand Ern's maddening ways just yet!

"Blow!" said Pip. "I bet old Goon's picked it up!"

Ern let out a frightened squeak, looking rather as though he might cry. He wanted to kick himself several times over for being so careless.

"You can't have dropped it long ago, Ern," said Fatty, reassuringly. "The best thing for you to do is to go back to your uncle's and see if you can get it back from him."

Ern looked as though he might faint with fright. He had tried several times to retract items confiscated by Mr. Goon and it had never seemed to go very well!

"It's all right, Ern," said Bets, cheerfully. "He might not even have noticed it."

"Goon never seems to spot things when they're right underneath his nose," added Daisy.

Ern nodded, feeling calmer now. He knew that the Find-Outers were right. He'd just have to go back and do everything in his power to find that notebook!

"Leave the note with us," said Fatty, slipping it inside the pocket of his shorts. "We'll all meet again here at the same time tomorrow. And mind you bring that notebook with you, Ern!"

Ern promised faithfully that he would, and almost ran out of the Trottevilles' garden in his haste to get it back. He still felt rotten and miserable for letting his wonderful friends down like this, and was determined to make up for his careless mistake! But love-a-duck, wouldn't his uncle be angry when he got home!

"I do hope Goon hasn't seen all of Ern's notes," Fatty said to the others. "The last thing we need is to have him on our tail again!"

The other eight nodded gloomily. Julian and Dick had heard many a tale of Mr. Goon's attempts at mystery-solving, and had passed some of it on to the girls. Each of them had always found the stories highly amusing, but now the prospect didn't seem quite as funny.

"Well, I suppose there's nothing to be done until tomorrow," said Pip, getting up. "Bets and I have an aunt coming to dinner, so we'd better be off. See you tomorrow!"

The two Hilton children waved goodbye, and went out at the garden gate. The others all got up as well, sensing that there was little point in staying with nothing more to do.

"Mother said it was quite all right to lend you a tent," Fatty said to George, who was standing next to him. "I shall just go and get it from the shed."

"And we brought ours over earlier," said Larry, indicating a rolled up something he had strapped to his bicycle.

"Thanks awfully!" said George, beaming at their new friends. Moments later, Fatty had returned with the tent. It had been decided that Fatty would walk the Famous Five to Petter's Field, where they would set up camp, as it was beginning to get dark. Larry and Daisy, who had the inconvenience of bicycles, went straight home. Buster was led back into the house, much to his great disappointment.

Fatty chatted amicably as they walked to the field, pointing out various sights on the way. Dick, George and Anne replied with as much enthusiasm. Julian was rather quiet.

Petter's field was big and square, the ideal place for a camping holiday. Fatty stayed to help them put up the tents, and they continued to talk.

"It'd be wizard if this turns into a proper adventure!" gushed George, who had overcome her gloominess and was now rather excited. She drove a tent peg into the ground, and looked about her for the mallet.

"An adventure?" Fatty grinned at George, as he handed it to her. "Those things are more commonly referred to as a 'mystery' round here!" Their eyes met for slightly longer than necessary as George's fingers closed around the mallet. She looked away and cleared her throat, beginning to hammer the tent peg into the ground. Her cheeks were slightly pink.

As soon as the tents were up, Fatty shook hands with each of them. George was determined only to make fleeting eye contact this time as Fatty reached her. With an extracted promise that they would come to his house at the appointed time the next day, Fatty ambled off back up the field and disappeared into the near-darkness.

Worn out with their long journey and the excitement of the day, the Famous Five retired into their separate tents. Despite how exhausted they were, it took all five of them a little while to drop off to sleep. Anne's head was filled with the adventure ahead. She hoped against hope that Mr. Goon hadn't found Ern's notebook, because he had seemed really very unpleasant indeed! George, lying next to her, was feeling rather cross with herself for thinking about Fatty. She was certain it wasn't entirely her fancy that his handshake had lingered slightly longer with her, than it had with any of her cousins...

In the adjacent tent, Dick was worrying about his brother. Julian had seemed rather vacant in Fatty's garden earlier, and he had definitely been quiet on their way to the field. He had hoped his brother might throw himself into an adventure despite everything, but now he wasn't so sure. He glanced over. Julian was staring up at the tent canvas, wondering why he didn't feel the least bit excited that something strange had turned up. He was trying to work out why none of the old Julian seemed to be around much anymore. But he didn't seem to possess any of the answers.

Timmy, of course, was lying at George's feet with one eye open just in case any intruders dared to show up. He was back with his beloved four children again, and nothing could make him any happier! When they all eventually did drop off to sleep, only Timmy was truly at peace. He dreamt of chasing rabbits round and round the field, with his new friend Buster!


	8. Chapter 8

When Ern had returned to Mr. Goon's that afternoon, he had snuck in as quietly as possible at the door. The last thing he wanted was to attract his uncle's attention. He stole quietly through the kitchen and down the hallway, hoping to slip straight up to his room to avoid a confrontation. As he reached the foot of the stairs however, there was a loud cough. One foot poised on the bottommost step, Ern froze.

"Come here, young Ern!" Mr. Goon called. Ern cursed his bad luck as he realised that the study door was open and that Mr. Goon's desk faced directly opposite it. He had been sitting in the same spot ever since Ern had taken off, waiting to catch him when he came home. Wincing slightly, Ern went into the study. His uncle was sitting before him, his arms folded and a cross expression on his face. Ern almost groaned out loud as he noticed his little black notebook lying on the desk in front of him.

"What did you mean by slipping out when my back was turned? You knew I wanted a word with you!" said Mr. Goon sternly, getting straight to the point.

"I-I wanted to go and see Fatty, Uncle! I knew that if I stayed here and listened to you it'd be too late to go today," explained Ern, cowering slightly. He didn't expect his uncle to believe him at all!

"Gah!" snorted Goon at once. "You, young Ern, are a disobedient so-and-so! And therefore –"Goon drew himself up dramatically, whilst he cast around for a suitable punishment. Ern waited anxiously, wondering what his uncle would say. And more importantly, whether he'd taken a look at his nephew's notebook! Ern didn't think so somehow, although he couldn't say why.

" – you are not to visit Master Trotteville tomorrow. That ought to teach you!"

Ern's jaw dropped in dismay. This was the worst kind of punishment when he was so desperate to show the others his notes! He didn't think he could possibly wait until the day after that! But he was sensible enough to realise that if he accepted the punishment, his uncle might be more inclined to lift it sooner rather than later.

"Yes, Uncle," said Ern. He pointed at the notebook. "Could I have that back, please? I dropped it earlier."

"You shall have it tomorrow morning," Goon replied, feeling important and authoritative. "Once you've thought about your actions."

Recognising this as a dismissal, Ern headed upstairs feeling very glum indeed. His uncle was sure to look at the notebook just to spite him now that he had asked for it back! He hoped he hadn't appeared too keen to retrieve it. Ern went straight to bed, too miserable to do anything else. He lay awake for an hour or two, disappointed in himself for being such an ass. He checked his watch after a while, and was surprised to see that it read half past eleven. He hadn't heard his uncle come up to bed. Terrified that this might mean he had decided to stay up to peruse the notebook, Ern put on his dressing gown and stole downstairs again as quietly as possible. As he reached the hallway however, he heard soft snores coming from the study. The door was open as Ern had left it, and there sat his uncle fast asleep! The notebook had not moved from its place on the desk. Breathing a sigh of relief, Ern went back to bed. His uncle was a heavy sleeper – by the time Mr. Goon woke up he wouldn't have time to look at the notebook. With any luck he'd have forgotten it completely! Ern found it much easier to get to sleep after this last thought.

The telephone bell rang out at eight o'clock sharp the next morning. Mrs. Trotteville answered and shouted up the stairs to Fatty.

"Frederick! There's somebody who wants to speak to you!"

Fatty was at the receiver at once, in case Ern was in some kind of trouble. He had been slightly worried what Mr. Goon might have said to Ern when he got home yesterday evening. His fears were confirmed when it was indeed Ern at the other end of the line.

"Fatty, it's me! What do you think? Uncle's forbidden me from seeing you today, because I snuck out yesterday."

"That's too bad, Ern! Although I can't say I'm surprised," said Fatty ruefully, knowing that his own mother also wouldn't let something like that go unpunished.

"I can't possibly wait until tomorrow to show you the notes, Fatty! I'm dying to know what you think!" said Ern, desperately.

"I'm afraid you'll have to, Ern. There's nothing else to be done. Unless –" Fatty was suddenly struck with an idea. He didn't see that there was much difference between reading the notes today and reading them tomorrow, but he did see an opportunity to have some fun with Mr. Goon. And despite everything, he felt rather sorry for Ern.

"Fatty?" called Ern, as his friend had gone quiet.

"Leave it to me, Ern!" said Fatty, in his usual cheerful way. "All I can say for now is, expect a jolly visitor this afternoon!"

Fatty rang off and went into the dining room for breakfast, leaving a very puzzled Ern in his wake.

At the same time that Fatty was breakfasting, so too were the Famous Five as they sat outside their tents. It was a bright morning, warm and inviting. Each of them was looking forward to the day ahead.

"I do so hope Goon hasn't read Ern's notebook!" sighed Anne, for the third time that day. She had dreamed that Goon had indeed read it the night before, and had chased Ern all over Peterswood.

"I can't think he'd make much of it," said Julian, eating his bacon.

"But that's how Fatty said their adventures always seem to start," said George. "Mr. Goon finds out some information he ought not to know about, and goes off on the wrong track."

"You make it sound as though the Five Find-Outers are in a story book," laughed Anne, cheerfully.

"I expect they think the same of us," added Dick. "After some of the adventures we've had."

They began to look back over the strange encounters they had had over the years, and discussed them cheerfully. Even Julian joined in, and they laughed together, Timmy barking along in unison. When it was time to go to Fatty's, they were all in very good moods indeed. The rest of the Find-Outers were already there when they arrived in Fatty's garden, and he immediately explained his telephone call from Ern. There was a collective groan of disappointment. Everyone had been excited to read Ern's notes, and to begin to work them out!

"Now although the most sensible plan seems to be to wait until tomorrow," said Fatty, " I've come up with an idea which means we can have some fun with Goon and read those notes this afternoon."

"But how, Fatty?" asked Pip, rather confused. "We can't if Ern isn't allowed to see us."

"It's simple, Pip, old boy!" replied Fatty, cheerfully. "Think about it, what's the one plan of action that Goon falls for every time?"

"A disguise!" shrieked Bets, jumping up and down.

"I knew you'd think of it, Bets," said Fatty, giving her a smile and a wink. Bets beamed back at him, proud that she had been the first to get it.

"Of course!" grinned Larry. "It's been ages since we've hoodwinked Goon with a good old disguise. What do you suggest, Fatty?"

"I was thinking something simple, such as a butcher's boy," Fatty replied.

"That's a bit old hat, isn't it? You've gone up in the world since then, Fatty!" Pip joked.

"That old balloon woman was my favourite!" said Daisy, laughing at the thought. There was a pause as she began to explain to the Famous Five how Fatty had disguised himself as an old woman and tricked them all, Goon included! The four of them roared with laughter to think of it.

"Quite true, that was one of my better disguises," smiled Fatty, without modesty. "But I wasn't thinking of me – I rather thought Dick might fancy the job."

"Me?" Dick repeated, surprised but excited at the same time. "Rather!"

"We've all disguised ourselves many a time," said Fatty, as he walked over to unlock his shed. "Julian's a bit tall to pass for a butcher's boy, but Dick would be able to manage it."

Somehow they all managed to squeeze into Fatty's shed. It held the Five Find-Outers and Buster quite comfortably, but with the other four and Timmy, it wasn't quite so roomy. The Kirrin children were amazed at the range of different disguises; on Fatty's invitation, they began opening drawers and cupboards to take a closer look, whilst Fatty began looking out various items for Dick's disguise. The other Find-Outers settled themselves on the floor, laughing at their new friends' astonishment. They had been through Fatty's disguises themselves several times, and were pleased that they could show off Fatty so much.

Anne was rather taken with Fatty's collection of hats, and insisted upon trying them all on. Dick took a shine to an eyepatch he discovered in a drawer. Even Julian, who had been rather reserved at first, seemed to be enjoying himself. George opened a box on the table in the corner, and laughed as she saw that it was entirely full to the brim with false teeth. Picking up a set of them, she held them up for Fatty to see.

"Do you actually wear these?" she chuckled. "I wonder you can talk at all with them in. You are a marvel, Fatty!"

Fatty looked pleased at this compliment, and flashed her one of his best smiles as he located a butcher's apron for Dick. Bets frowned.

It wasn't long before Fatty set to work disguising Dick, with much help from the rest of them. He soon stood before them all, almost unrecognisable with black, curly hair, heaps of freckles and a set of Fatty's false teeth. Once the apron was added, he looked the perfect butcher's boy indeed. It had been decided that he would borrow Larry's bicycle and cycle over to Mr. Goon's immediately.

"Remember," said Fatty, clapping Dick on the back. "Tell Goon that the meat you delivered this morning was beef shank instead of lamb shank, and that you've come to exchange it. Once he's gone, tell Ern to give you the notebook and to meet us all here at this time tomorrow."

"Right," nodded Dick, feeling nervous but excited. The others wished him luck and he was soon off, careering down the road at a frightful speed.

"What if Ern isn't to hand when Dick arrives?" asked Anne, the thought suddenly occurring to her.

"Oh, I don't think we need to worry about that," chuckled Fatty. "I told him to expect a visitor this afternoon. If I know Ern, he'll have been pacing the hallway all day, lying in wait and generally getting in the way of everybody!"

It only goes to show how exceptionally well Fatty knew Ern indeed, for that was exactly what he had been doing all day!


	9. Chapter 9

This one's slightly shorter. Sorry it's going so slowly, I promise that something exciting and mysterious will happen very soon! :)

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><p>Mr. Goon glanced up from his weekly report and frowned. Ern was standing in the hallway again! The policeman had taken to leaving his study door open in order to observe Ern, who had been hovering in the hallway all day. Every time Goon confronted his nephew however, Ern would deny that he was hovering at all.<p>

"Gah!" thought Mr. Goon, suspiciously. The boy was definitely hovering for some reason or other! And he, Goon, was going to find out why!

Suddenly struck with what he considered a rather clever idea, Mr. Goon strode into the hallway. Ern started as his uncle appeared. He was sitting on the stairs, thoroughly bored with waiting for this mysterious visitor that Fatty had promised!

"Ern!" barked Mr. Goon, in a brisk manner.

"Yes, Uncle?" Ern replied, rather cautiously. He knew that his loitering around the front door was making Mr. Goon suspicious, but he didn't see what else he could do. He was so desperate for Fatty to see his notes that very instant! He had hoped his uncle might go out at some point, but he didn't seem to be showing any signs of going anywhere.

"I want you to do something for me," Mr. Goon continued. "See this report, here?" He held up a large square envelope.

"Yes, Uncle," nodded Ern, with a horrible feeling he knew what was coming next.

"I want you to go down to the police station and hand it in," said Mr. Goon.

Ern's heart sank. Leaving his post in the hallway would mean he might miss Fatty's visitor!

"Wouldn't it be better coming from you, Uncle?" Ern asked, trying to sound casual. "You usually deliver all of your reports yourself."

"Yes, well... I've got other important things to be getting on with," said Mr. Goon, annoyed that Ern was so reluctant to leave. What on earth was the boy up to? Goon suddenly remembered that he had snuck out to the Trottevilles' yesterday afternoon. Could that mean they'd sniffed out another one of their mysteries?

Seeing that he had no other choice, Ern sighed and took the report from Mr. Goon. Once he was out of the front door, he began sprinting down the high street as fast as his legs would carry him. He wanted to be back as soon as possible so as not to miss anything!

Mr. Goon meanwhile, convinced that Ern and the Find-Outers had caught wind of something mysterious, paid a visit to the coat closet. Ern's jacket was hanging on a peg. He quickly went through the pockets, looking for clues. Finding nothing but a packet of rather sticky boiled sweets and a blunt pencil, however, he was forced to withdraw.

"Blow!" thought Mr. Goon, returning to his study. He wondered where to look next. Casting his eyes around the room absent-mindedly, his gaze fell on the little notebook still lying on the desk.

"Of course!" said Goon out loud, as he reached for the notebook. He had completely forgotten about the confiscated item of yesterday! This was bound to be the key to the whole mystery! And indeed it was. Mr. Goon found the note that Ern had copied, and carefully jotted it down onto a pad beside him. Then he made a copy of the descriptions Ern had written down at the train station. Goon didn't know quite what it all meant, but he was sure it was important!

He was just about to study the note when he heard a noise from the kitchen. Hastily stuffing his own pad into a drawer and picking up Ern's notebook, Mr. Goon went out into the hallway. He instantly collided with Ern, who had snuck in the back way in case Fatty's visitor had arrived and was at that moment conversing with Mr. Goon.

"Sorry, Uncle," said Ern, again attempting to sound casual. He hoped Mr. Goon hadn't noticed he'd snuck in quietly. He was also trying not to seem out of breath, having ran all the way to the police station and back again. "I delivered the report, Uncle."

"Well done, Ern!" replied Mr. Goon. "In return, you may have this back." He handed the notebook to Ern, who took it rather suspiciously. He guessed that no visitor had called in his absence because there hadn't been enough time; he had been gone a matter of minutes! So why had Mr. Goon wanted him out of the way? To read the notebook, of course! Ern's heart sank.

At that moment, the doorbell rang. Before Ern could do anything, Mr. Goon was at the door. Ern rushed to the foot of the stairs at once, trying to get a glimpse of the visitor over his uncle's shoulder. Ern felt rather disappointed. Why, it was only a butcher's boy! He wondered how long it would be before Fatty's visitor came along.

Mr. Goon, however, was more suspicious. He knew Mrs. Cockles had already answered the door to the butcher's boy that morning. He instantly took in the boy's appearance, wondering if he was Fatty in disguise. After all, there had been countless occasions where that fat boy had fooled him whilst dressed similarly! He saw, however, that this boy was rather skinny and at once felt satisfied that he had come straight from the butcher's. After all, Frederick Trotteville could make himself up to be as big as he liked, but he couldn't disguise himself by being thinner!

"Sorry to bother you again, sir," Dick said, politely. "I'm afraid there was a bit of a mix up with the meat this morning. I delivered beef shank by mistake, but I have the lamb in my basket. Would you mind if I exchanged them, sir?"

Mr. Goon was so glad that this butcher's boy wasn't Fatty and that he was polite and well-mannered instead, that he went off to fetch the meat without a moment's hesitation. As soon as his back was turned, Dick whispered to Ern, who was still waiting patiently at the foot of the stairs.

"Psst! Ern! It's me, Dick!"

Ern blinked in surprise. Then his mouth fell open as he looked at the butcher's boy more closely. "Dick, it is you! Love-a-duck, Fatty's disguised you marvellously!"

Dick grinned. "Listen, I don't have much time! Give me the notebook and I'll take it back to Fatty and the others. We'll have a look over it this afternoon, and meet you at Fatty's tomorrow at the usual time."

Ern handed the notebook to Dick, still taken aback at his disguise. Really, the things Fatty could do were simply wonderful!

Dick placed the notebook inside the basket and hopped back onto Larry's bike. He had just begun to cycle off when Ern called after him.

"Dick! Uncle's seen the notebook!"

Dick raised a hand in acknowledgement and had cycled off at top speed a second later. Hearing Mr. Goon's heavy footsteps coming back down the hallway, Ern shot off upstairs with surprising agility. The last thing he wanted was to be questioned by his Uncle about the identity of the butcher's boy! He didn't trust himself to speak in case he gave the game away!

Mr. Goon returned to the front door, carrying the parcel of beef. He was astonished to find the door wide open as he had left it, but no butcher's boy on the threshold. Goon peered down the road but there wasn't a single boy in sight! He even parted the bushes in the garden to see if the boy had left his bicycle, but he seemed to have vanished into thin air! Mr. Goon wondered briefly if he'd imagined the whole thing. Suddenly remembering that Ern had witnessed the butcher's boy too, Mr. Goon turned to where his nephew had been standing. But there was no one else in the hallway.

"Gah!" said Goon. He slammed the front door and returned to his study, still clutching the beef shank.


	10. Chapter 10

When Dick returned to Fatty's garden minutes later with Ern's notebook, he received a cheer all round. The children were keen to know what had happened, and Dick quickly related his story. They all roared with laughter as Dick described how he had taken off, leaving a very confused Mr. Goon behind him.

Dick lay the notebook down in front of them all on the grass, and as one the group began to read Ern's description of the two men he had seen at the station.

"It was very sharp of Ern to write down these details," said Fatty, who had soon memorised them. "But they aren't going to be very helpful to us at this stage."

Larry nodded. "There are heaps of men around who wear grey suits and beige suits!" he said, hopelessly.

"Let's have another look at that note, Fatty?" said Julian suddenly. "Perhaps that might be of a bit more use."

Fatty dug deep in his pocket for the note that Ern had left with him the day before. He passed it over to Julian. As they pored over the note once more, Dick couldn't help but be rather pleased. Julian was taking a definite interest in the whole situation!

"It looks like a date," said George, glancing at the others to see what they thought of this suggestion. "MAR 15 could be the fifteenth of March!"

"It might be," said Daisy. "But what about the four?"

"A time, perhaps?" suggested Pip. "Something could have happened on March 15th at four o'clock?"

"I think you're right," nodded Fatty. "That would make sense. And obviously whatever it is took place in Peterswood. But if this event has already happened then why were the two men so interested in the note?"

"Ern mentioned another man," said Anne, suddenly. "The men were talking about somebody called Sluggy."

The others recalled this, but none of them could work out how a third man fitted into the picture. There was a brief silence as everybody thought hard. Bets frowned, her expression one of utmost concentration.

"What are you thinking about, Bets?" asked Fatty. Bets was quite often the one who had a sudden brainwave and he very much hoped that this was the case now.

"I seem to remember Mother mentioning that date in one of her letters," said Bets. "Whenever I write to her from school I always ask if anything interesting has happened in Peterswood. She mentioned that date especially."

"Why, Bets, why did she mention it?" said Pip, excitedly.

"Don't hassle me, Pip! I'm trying to remember!" Bets replied. Everybody was silent once more, their eyes focused on Bets. Suddenly she let out a loud shriek.

"I remember, Fatty, I remember!" she exclaimed, leaping up in her excitement. "It was a fair! Mother said that a fair was coming to Peterswood on the fifteenth of March!"

"A fair!" repeated Fatty, thoughtfully. The Find-Outers were immediately very excited; after all, this wasn't the first time they had encountered a mystery at a fair!

"But, Fatty, what use is that to us now?" asked Larry. "The fair must have left Peterswood months ago! What can we do about it?"

Fatty didn't have an answer to this question, and neither did any of the others. They began looking over the note and descriptions again, just for something to do. Dick looked positively delighted when Julian held the note up to the light in order to see it better.

"Wait a second!" Julian exclaimed suddenly, frowning. "There's something written on the note, over the top of the writing! It's very faint though, I can't quite make it out!"

At once, all the children sat up. Just when they had been unsure how to proceed something new had cropped up!

"Oooh!" squealed Bets excitedly. "Perhaps it's invisible ink, Fatty!"

"Can I see it?" asked Fatty, and Julian at once handed the note over. He had been told many tales by Larry about what an expert Fatty was with invisible ink. There was a hushed silence as Fatty held the note up. He studied it for a few seconds, his brow furrowed.

"Bets, will you run inside and fetch a candle?" Fatty asked, and Bets obediently got up and sped indoors. She soon returned with a candle and a box of matches.

Fatty lit the candle and held the note to it at a safe distance. The other children watched, intrigued. It was not long before the heat meant the words on the note showed more clearly. They slowly became more legible and Fatty snuffed out the candle.

"Keystone, July 7th!" read Dick out loud, triumphantly. The others all looked at one another, too amazed by this piece of luck to take it all in.

"That's next week!" said George. "Where is Keystone?"

"It's about half an hour away from here," replied Fatty. "It's bigger than Peterswood. Don't you see what this means? It must be one of those travelling fairs and it's soon to be at Keystone! Sluggy, or whoever gave the two men this note, obviously wrote down an old date to throw anyone who happened to come across it off the scent!"

"But the men didn't know about the invisible ink," said Daisy. "Ern said they didn't understand what it meant at all!"

"Does that mean they're in the wrong place then?" asked Anne.

"Yes," nodded Fatty. "They're completely wasting their time in Peterswood."

"But surely it's only a matter of days before they realise they're in the wrong place?" said Larry.

Fatty grinned. "That's exactly why we've got to get to the fair at Keystone before they do. Monday is the 7th July. And on Monday, Find-Outers, Famous Five and Ern will do some serious investigating!"

Whilst this exciting discovery was taking place, Ern was having a very unexciting afternoon indeed. He had spent most of it in his bedroom, keeping out of his uncle's way. Ern had been most distraught to be forbidden from visiting Fatty, and he knew that avoiding his uncle was the only way his punishment might be lifted. Otherwise he would jolly well say something he might regret!

At five o'clock, however, Ern became rather peckish. By five thirty, his stomach was starting to complain, and he found that it was absolutely necessary to go downstairs to get something to eat. He crept down the stairs as quietly as possible, still hoping not to see his uncle. To his relief the study door was closed. As he passed it, Ern could hear Mr. Goon speaking to somebody on the telephone. Curiosity got the better of him, and he pressed his ear to the door.

"Hallo!" said Goon, in what Ern supposed he believed to be a jovial manner. To Ern, he just sounded as cross and formidable as usual! "Could you tell me where the travelling fair that arrived in Peterswood on March 15th is now, please?"

Ern's mouth fell open in surprise at Mr. Goon's enquiry. Having studied the note numerous times, he knew the numbers on it very well indeed. It had occurred to Ern too, as he had pondered in his bedroom, that the note revealed a date. But a travelling fair had been entirely unexpected! Just how had his uncle made that connection? He supposed that being a member of the police force was very handy for situations like this. Goon undoubtedly had many useful contacts. Ern quickly came out of his reverie in order to hear the rest of Mr. Goon's telephone conversation.

"Keystone, you say?" Mr. Goon repeated. "And it arrives there next week? Thank you very much!"

His uncle had evidently rung off because silence fell once more. Ern quickly trotted off into the kitchen in case Goon opened the door to find his nephew eavesdropping. As he closed the kitchen door behind him, he distinctly heard a triumphant "Gah!" emanating from the study. Ern was very disturbed indeed. He suddenly found himself climbing the walls in dismay that he was unable to visit Fatty at once! Not realising that his friends had already made the connection, he believed Mr. Goon to be much further along than they were. But as Ern calmed down slightly, he remembered what his uncle had said. The travelling fair would not arrive in Keystone until next week, so there was nothing Goon could do until then. Feeling slightly relieved, Ern made his mind up to go and see the Find-Outers and Five as early as possible the next day. It was imperative that they went to Keystone next week, and Ern was determined to beat Goon to it. He didn't understand this new phase of the mystery one bit, but he was blowed if he was going to let his uncle get one step ahead!


	11. Chapter 11

Massive apologies that it's taken me so long to update! I'm hoping I'll have some more time to devote to it now, so expect another update within the next couple of weeks!

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><p>It was very much to the Famous Five's amusement, as they breakfasted outside their tents the following morning, to spot a lone figure on the horizon tearing across Petter's Field towards them.<p>

It was a gloriously sunny day and Julian put a hand to his brow to shield his eyes against the light. With the sun no longer affecting his sight and the figure getting nearer, he had no trouble at all in spotting that it was Ern. Timmy ran to meet him at once, his tail wagging furiously.

By the time Ern stopped outside the two tents, he had a raging stitch in his side and could do nothing but pant. It was times like this that Ern bore a striking resemblance to Mr. Goon, for his face was as red as a tomato! The four children sat there in astonishment, waiting for Ern to catch his breath. They couldn't imagine quite what had prompted him to come hurrying along in such a manner! Twice he attempted to speak and failed, and twice Anne couldn't help but giggle. George nudged her in the ribs, concerned that Ern might not say what he had come to tell them if he thought he was being laughed at.

"What on earth is it, Ern?" prompted Dick, rather impatiently. He didn't think he could wait any longer!

"I telephoned Fatty this morning," said Ern, still short of breath. "And he said we were all to meet here today."

"Is that all?" said George, rather disappointed. She had expected something much more exciting than a message from Fatty!

"Yes," replied Ern, sitting down on the grass beside them and heaving a weary sigh.

"Did you really run all the way here just to tell us that? I do think it was jolly mean of you! I thought something mysterious had happened!" George persisted, still looking put out.

"Something mysterious has happened!" said Ern, half surprised and half hurt at George's insult. He thought she was very strange indeed, and couldn't quite work her out! "But that's not why I ran. I saw Uncle in the village just now on his bicycle, and he looked very cross. I didn't want to say something else to upset him and be forbidden from seeing all of you again!"

He seemed so concerned about this that George softened at once, and they all laughed. Ern went rather red again, but soon saw that they were laughing with him rather than at him. They were a decent bunch! But Ern knew that any friends of Fatty's were bound to be decent sorts! There was a whistle and the five friends and Timmy looked up to see Larry and Daisy coming towards them.

"Hallo!" said Larry, who was carrying a large basket. He saw the others looking at it and gave a grin. "Mother didn't approve of Daisy and I going off so early without any breakfast, so she's packed us all a picnic. I knew you four would have food, of course, but there are still the other six of us to consider! And Timmy and Buster too!"

Timmy ran over and gave him a big lick at the sound of his name. Daisy sat down beside Ern and turned to him.

"Hallo, Ern!" she said cheerfully, and Ern thought once again how nice it was to be around so many friends. "Your punishment's been lifted today then?"

"Yes," said Ern. "Uncle may be many things but he always keeps to his word."

"That's an admirable trait," said the unmistakeable voice of Fatty as it drew up beside them. He was accompanied by Buster, Pip and Bets. "Goon doesn't have many of them, but that is one of his redeeming qualities. Glad you could join us today, Ern. We've got much to tell you."

"And I've got much to tell you, Fatty!" said Ern, eager to be as helpful as he possibly could.

"We've got something to report as well," said Julian, and they all turned to him in surprise. The Famous Five had been present at the discovery of the invisible ink yesterday, and had only parted from the others late in the afternoon. What news could they possibly have?

"Perhaps you'd better go first," said Fatty, sitting down on the grass and accepting toast and marmalade from Daisy.

"We've got new neighbours," said Dick, pointing a way off down the field where a slightly smaller tent had been pitched. "They arrived late last night."

"What time?" asked Larry, who had been taught by his Find-Outer experience that timing was always very important.

"We don't know," said George. "We turned in last night and there was nobody here but ourselves, and when we awoke this morning there was the tent!"

"But anybody can camp here," shrugged Pip, rather nonplussed.

"This isn't anybody!" interjected Anne excitedly, determined to have her say. "Do have a guess at how the two men were dressed when George and I saw them this morning! We went to get water and walked past their tent to reach the stream."

At once everybody's mouths fell open in excitement. None of the children needed to say anything to know that one man had been dressed in a beige suit and hat, and the other in grey!

Ern let out a whistle. "Cor! Love-a-duck!"

"What a coincidence!" squealed Bets.

"How lucky we seem to be!" said Daisy, and the others murmured in agreement. Only Fatty remained silent.

"What do you think, Fatty?" asked George, her eyes shining with excitement.

"I'm not sure," said Fatty, thoughtfully. "I thought we'd all meet here today because there was less chance of us being overheard, as well as a bit more space. But it seems as though Petter's Field is the worst place to work out what we're going to do next!"

"I don't see that it makes much difference," said Julian. "The men saw us earlier and didn't pay us any notice. They'll just think we're a bunch of silly kids!"

"And if we keep our voices down, we won't be overheard," reasoned Pip.

"We're all here now, Fatty!" pouted Bets. "I shall jolly well burst with anticipation if we have to move somewhere else!"

Fatty chuckled at this. "All right, Bets! We're much too fond of you to allow you to burst! Ern, perhaps you'd like to tell us very quietly about your news."  
>Ern also seemed to be in danger of bursting at that moment, as he swelled with pride at the opportunity to relay his information. He told them all about the telephone conversation he had overheard, and how Goon had worked out from the note that a fair was to be in Keystone the following week. He was surprised and rather put out to find that every one of his friends groaned at the end of his story.<p>

"I didn't even think of Goon!" said Larry.

"I certainly didn't think he'd be as sharp as that," admitted Fatty. "Well Ern, I'm afraid we already know all about the fair! But it's a blow to hear that Goon is on the scent too!"

Fatty explained to a rather confused Ern all about Julian's spotting the invisible ink, and how Bets had associated the numbers on the note with the date of a travelling fair. Once he had been filled in on the situation, everybody fell silent as they pondered what to do next.

"I really thought the invisible ink put us one step ahead," said Anne, dejectedly.

"So did I," agreed Fatty. "But Goon isn't as stupid as he looks. And he's the first person to know all about what goes on in Peterswood. Even without the ink, it was only a matter of time before he made the connection. He's got all the contacts, you see."

"What do we do now, Fatty?" asked George, and her cousins were all rather amused. It was odd to see George ask that question of anybody other than Julian, who she had always deferred to as leader! But Julian didn't mind in the slightest that Fatty was in charge of this adventure. They were on his turf after all!

The others all turned to look at Fatty, awaiting the response. It was maddening not to know which way to turn, and to have nothing obvious to do straight away!

"For now, there's nothing we can do," Fatty said, smiling ruefully at the crestfallen faces around him. "But as soon as Monday morning comes, we shall be at the fair in Keystone. That ought to give us some answers. In the meantime, I suggest the Famous Five here keep a watchful eye on their new neighbours. Just in case!"


	12. Chapter 12

I've had so many lovely reviews from people recently asking when the next chapter's up, that I feel positively ashamed it's taken me so long! Please accept my humble apologies that it's taken me months and that this one's so short. I've got the week off so I promise to have a couple more chapters up in the next few days! Keep reading & reviewing guys, you're all fab! :)

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><p>When Mr. Goon arrived at the fair in Keystone on Monday morning, he was very annoyed indeed. All weekend he had been looking forward to coming here, to using his policing authority to find out all he could, and getting one up on those detestable Find-Outers and their friends. And now, thanks to a telephone call from Chief Superintendent Jenks, his spirits had been well and truly dampened!<p>

Mr. Goon had just been heading out of the door, preparing to cycle over to Keystone, when the telephone rang. Turning and making straight for the study, Mr. Goon answered it rather crossly. Today was an important day and he didn't want to be delayed one bit!

"Don't you sound impatient today, Goon!" chuckled Chief Superintendent Jenks. "Your voice reminds me of black clouds and stormy weather! Cheer up, it's a lovely sunny day!"

Goon scowled slightly but forced his manner into something much more polite. "Sorry, sir! Lots to do today, you know. I'm supervising the fair in Keystone."

"I know, Goon," replied his superior, "and that's what I'm calling about. Since you're only patrolling a field all day, I've assigned you one of our new recruits. I've told young P.C. Ackerley to meet you at the tea tent in Keystone at ten o'clock. He's very keen to learn and I thought I'd start him off with something small. See that you show him the ropes properly and don't go off on any wild tangents."

Goon guessed this last comment was a reference to his constant efforts to stop the Find-Outers in their tracks. He went red and gave an indignant cough. Ho, so he went off on wild tangents, did he? Well, he would show the Chief Superintendent that he was more than capable of chaperoning a junior officer for the day!

"Yes, sir," Goon replied, puffing himself out importantly as though the Superintendent was standing right next to him. "Goodbye, sir."

He all but slammed the receiver down and gave the same treatment to the front door on his way out. Ern poked his head round the kitchen doorframe and saw that one of the glass panes of the door had shattered. Golly, his uncle was in a frightful mood that morning! Ern wished he'd told his uncle where he was planning on going that day. He was sure it would only displease Mr. Goon even more when he spotted Ern and the others at Keystone! Glancing up at the kitchen clock, he darted out of the front door himself. It was time to go to the fair!

Half an hour later, Mr. Goon was still scowling, this time at his watch. He bobbed up and down on his feet a few times. This Ackerley was four minutes late! Did he really think it was acceptable to keep a well-respected and superior officer waiting? Gah! Well, Goon would show him!

"P.C. Goon?" came a sudden voice from behind him. Mr. Goon jumped into the air and turned, startled. Before him stood a thin, baby-faced officer whose helmet seemed slightly too big for him. The young man was wearing an enthusiastic grin, and was just the sort of eager officer that Goon loathed.

"Yes," Mr. Goon replied curtly, nodding to his colleague. "So I'm to be looking after you for the day, am I? That's one black mark on your record already, you're nearly five minutes late! Rule one, P.C. Ackerley, is never to keep the public waiting! If you're running late how can you be of any lawful help to anyone?"

"I'm ever so sorry, sir," said P.C. Ackerley earnestly, "but you see, I was helping an elderly lady in the lane down there, whose shopping bag had split. She said she'd asked an older policeman for help just minutes before, but he had scowled at her so dreadfully that she was quite afraid!"

"Yes, well," said Mr. Goon tersely. "I'm sure that the officer in question had lots of important work to be getting on with, and didn't have any time to spare!"

"Oh no, sir," contradicted P.C. Ackerley, "on the contrary, the elderly lady said the man was walking along quite leisurely, but with the air of a pompus bullfrog who wouldn't know how to help anyone if..." he tailed off at the look on Mr. Goon's face.

"You want to stop distracting yourself from your duty, P.C. Ackerley!" snapped Goon in response. "You're to do your duty under my watch, see? And your duty is to patrol the field, and keep an eye out for any fishy business! So don't you forget it!"

"Yes, sir," replied P.C. Ackerley, meekly.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the field, the Find-Outers, Famous Five and Ern had regrouped for the morning. They had had to make their way to Keystone separately, as the Famous Five had no bicycles. Instead they had travelled on the bus; the Find-Outers and Ern had cycled. It was simply too troublesome to take public transport in such a large number, and there weren't enough bikes to go round. Timmy and Buster, much to their dismay, had been left behind at the Trottevilles' house. Anne had felt so sorry for Timmy at being left behind that she almost vowed to stay back and keep the two dogs company herself. Fatty suggested that they call in at the butcher's shop on the way home and buy two fat, juicy bones by way of apology. George had positively beamed at him in response.

"You'd better hope old Goon doesn't decide to visit the butcher's at the same time, Dick!" chuckled Pip, clapping him on the back. "He'll be most surprised to see you on the other side of the counter!"

The others all laughed at this. Once their merriment had subsided, they turned to Fatty for instructions. The fair was quite a large one. From their spot in the corner of the field, they could see numerous stalls, tents and rides. It seemed impossible to know where to begin!

"What are we to do today, Fatty?" asked Bets excitedly, her eyes shining with anticipation. How simply wonderful it was to be in the middle of a mystery once more!

Fatty scratched his head and was silent for some time. "Well, Bets," he said, rather ruefully, "we haven't really got much to go on at all, I'm afraid. I suppose the best thing to do is to keep a lookout for those two men. They'll have discovered the fair isn't at Peterswood by now, and I'll bet my very best Sunday hat they know it's in Keystone too!"

"I say, Fatty," said Larry, struck with a sudden thought. "Those two men don't know about the secret message we discovered. So if something fishy is taking place here today, there's no guarantee they'll be here to take part in it!"

"You're onto something there," said Fatty thoughtfully. "But the date must mean something. Today is the seventh. Why write something in invisible ink if it isn't top secret?"

It was already decided that they would split off into groups to wander around the fair. Julian pointed out that as there were so many of them, they might look rather conspicuous. And if anything unusual was to be taking place, they certainly didn't want to draw attention to themselves! In any case, as Fatty said, they would be more likely to spot something if they weren't all wandering around together. Lawks, thought Ern admiringly, Fatty really did think of everything!

"I want to go with Fatty!" said Bets at once. The other Find-Outers laughed immediately, and Larry handed a sixpence over to Daisy, grinning. The two of them had betted that Bets would say such a thing earlier that very morning! Bets pouted, rather hurt that her friends had laughed at her in such a manner!

"It's all right, Bets," smiled Fatty, with a twinkle in his good-humoured eyes. He put his arm around her, and Bets beamed with delight. "You take no notice. I'll be glad to have you on my team, as always! George, why don't you join us?"

"All right," grinned George, stepping over to join them. Bets' smile vanished at once.

"Now, how about Larry, Dick and Anne going over to the right-hand side of the field," said Fatty, taking charge as usual. "And Julian, Pip, Daisy and Ern, you take the opposite side and start at the hoopla. You've all got your notebooks to record anything out of the ordinary?"

"Yes!" piped up nine eager voices, all checking pockets to make sure they were well equipped.

"Where are we going to start, Fatty?" asked Bets, whose manner seemed to have become uncommonly cool all of a sudden. So excited were the other children that it went quite unnoticed, except by Anne, who always considered other people's feelings. She made a mental note to point out this strange behaviour to George when they were settled in their tent later that evening.

"I thought we might go to the tea tent," said Fatty, his eyes glinting strangely as he glanced at the tent in question. "I fancy having some light-hearted fun before we start our hard day of detective work!"

The others followed his gaze and immediately fell about laughing. Even from their considerable distance, there was no mistaking P.C. Goon stationed at the tea tent. He was still being shadowed by the earnest P.C. Ackerley and looked very annoyed indeed.

"I say, who's that with him?" asked Daisy, squinting against the bright sunlight to make out the other uniformed figure.

"No idea," replied Fatty, "but it looks as if Goon's sharing his beat today. I'll bet he isn't happy about that!"

"He won't be," said Ern at once. "Uncle always prefers to go about his job by himself. He doesn't like sharing the limelight one bit!"

"We know that very well," chuckled Larry. "He's never once given us any credit for the things we've found out instead of him. He never stops trying to get one step ahead!"

"Well, that's good for us," said Fatty. "If Goon's babysitting another officer, it means he won't be able to investigate as thoroughly with another policeman on his tail. If there's one thing we can be sure of, it's that he won't be getting one up on us today!"

With that, and still very much amused at the cross expression on Mr. Goon's face, Five, Find-Outers and Ern went their separate ways. As they began their patrol of the field, each amateur sleuth felt very excited about the day ahead! One thing was for sure, thought Ern, as he and the other three stopped at the hoopla stall, if there was anything suspicious to be found they would surely sniff it out! He knew he was in the very best of hands when it came to mystery-solving, especially with the Five thrown into the mix! And although Ern knew he wasn't nearly so brave or as clever as his marvellous friends, he was jolly well certain that he was going to be on top of his game today! Watch out, villains, for Ern Goon was on the warpath once and for all!


	13. Chapter 13

Mr. Goon was less than happy to spot Fatty, Bets and George heading towards him across the field. Answering P.C. Ackerley's constant eager questions had put him in a thoroughly bad mood, and now the only person who could make it even worse was marching over to him! Goon's bad temper was not improved by the scorching sun beating down on his neck, though it was only ten thirty in the morning, or the fact that he knew he would have to return to Keystone fair and put himself through such hardships every day this week!

Not knowing about the note and the invisible ink meant that Goon was planning on patrolling the fair for the entirety of its stay in Keystone. He naturally supposed that this was what the Find-Outers intended to do as well - visiting for as long as it took for those two men to get up to their funny business! As Fatty and his friends drew closer, however, Goon's cross expression suddenly turned itself into one of considerable smugness. He had only just realised that Fatty didn't know he was onto the mystery as well! He undoubtedly knew that Goon had confiscated the notebook, but he didn't know that he had read it! And it was only natural for a policeman to be standing guard at such an event as this; his presence at the fair wouldn't seem at all suspicious! Goon realised that here was an opportunity to have some fun with the Find-Outers! He would feign ignorance to everything! And for once, he would be the one annoying Fatty! Goon's bad mood turned into a good one as fast as lightning.

"Hallo, Mr. Goon!" said Fatty, in his usual cheerful manner. Where Goon would normally have scowled at this, however, he merely smiled. Or at least attempted to, for Goon's smiles often came across as more of a grimace. Noting this unsual facial expression, Fatty and Bets were rather surprised. George, on the other hand, fought back a giggle. She had never seen anybody who was quite so purple up close before!

"Are you ill, Mr. Goon? Are you in pain?" Fatty asked, in a tone of innocent concern. Goon coloured slightly at these insolent questions, but merely forced himself to smile more. This time it was Bets who giggled, and she wasn't quite so adept at holding it in. Fatty nudged her in the ribs and she fought hard to keep her face straight.

"Quite well thank you, Master Trotteville," said Mr. Goon, unusually civil for once. It pained him slightly to be so nice to the boy, but after all, he had the upper hand here. Fatty was entirely in the dark as to what he knew about the whole affair! He tried to keep his next question as casual as possible. "And what are you children doing here today?"

"Oh, we've just come for a jolly day out, you know," replied Fatty, who was most certainly not in the dark about anything since Ern had overheard his uncle's phone call. It didn't even occur to him that the police officer might not have read his nephew's notebook - Goon was just the sort of person who poked his nose into everything, no matter how personal or private! "Who is your friend, Mr. Goon?"

Both men looked so affronted at being referred to as 'friends' that this time all three children had to work to keep straight faces. P.C. Ackerley gave a nervous laugh and shuffled his feet. Mr. Goon reddened even more, opened his mouth, spluttered a few times, and fell silent. This nuisance?! His friend?! Gah! He snorted.

"I'm P.C. Ackerley," said that young man, to smooth over the awkward situation. He shook hands with the three of them in turn. "I'm new to Peterswood. Mr. Goon is in charge today."

"Yes, you hear that?" snarled Mr. Goon, his bad mood slowly returning. "I'm in charge! So we won't have any of your meddling here today, thank you very much! I'm showing P.C. Ackerley the ropes and I haven't got time to be dealing with any tiresome children!"

"The ropes?" Fatty asked, interestedly. "Well, I must say Mr. Goon, you'll find some smashing ropes at the swing boats. The ones that pull them back and forth, you know? I'm sure P.C. Ackerley would be very interested in those!"

Bets and George laughed. So did P.C. Ackerley. He threw back his head so forcefully that his helmet was in danger of falling off, and began to chuckle.

"Oh, very good!" he said, still laughing. "The ropes! As in actual ropes! I say, that is a good-"

He stopped suddenly, catching sight of Mr. Goon's face. It seemed to have swollen to twice its usual size, and had turned a very strange puce colour indeed.

"Have you met my friend, George, Mr. Goon?" Fatty said politely, thinking it was probably time for a change of subject. "She and her cousins are visiting us, and you've seen them around too, of course. I've never carried out a formal introduction though, it was most remiss of me."

"How do you do?" said George politely, holding out her hand. Mr. Goon stared at it suspiciously, as though it was a bomb waiting to go off. Reluctantly he shook it.

"This, George, is the wonderful Mr. Goon I've been telling you all about," said Fatty. "You met him the other day, but as he was half-convinced his nephew was hiding in the shrubbery at the time, I think he might have been feeling a little off colour. Mr. Goon is an inspiration to me, a hero. Isn't he a hero, Bets?"

"Oh, yes!" piped up Bets, trying and failing to suppress a giggle. It seemed to burst out of her like a small explosion. Mr. Goon also exploded, though in quite a different way.

"Gah!" he snorted, his hands balled into fists of rage behind his back. How dare that Frederick Trotteville make fun of him in front of a junior officer! Goon forgot all about his clever plan to appear completely ignorant - all he could think about was grabbing hold of Fatty and hurling him from this end of the field to the other!

"You move along now!" he barked. "You're blocking the entrance to the tea tent! Go and bother somebody else! Gah!"

"Goodbye, Mr. Goon!" the children called, seeing nothing for it but to allow themselves to be sent away. They wandered over to a nearby cake stall, where George and Bets gave into the fits of laughter they had been dying to let out. Even Fatty wiped a few tears from his eyes at the look on Goon's face when he had pronounced him a hero. Really, Goon was too funny!

* * *

><p>It was not long before the hero was approached by Larry, Dick and Anne, who passed him on their circuit round the other side of the field.<p>

"Golly, doesn't Goon look simply furious?" said Dick, as the two policeman came into view.

"That'll be because he's just had a conversation with Fatty!" chuckled Larry, who knew very well by now how much his friend infuriated the red-faced officer. "Shall we go and say hello ourselves?"

"Oh no!" said Anne, who was rather afraid of Mr. Goon. "He looks frightful! Don't lets go and talk to him when he looks so dreadfully cross!"

So they instead contented themselves with walking past in full view, and giving Mr. Goon extraordinarily cheery waves. He snorted and at once pretended not to have seen. The three of them laughed as they wandered over to the next stall.

"You seem to be very popular with the children around here, Mr. Goon," said P.C. Ackerley, who had tired of standing guard in complete silence, with only the older officer's occasional snorts for company. "They all seem to know you. And wasn't it nice of that stout boy to say you were an inspiration to him! A hero was what he said, wasn't it?"

"Yes," spat Goon shortly, his anger no less prominent at the memory. He was getting extremely tired of P.C. Ackerley and wanted nothing more than to get him out from under his feet! He was also aware that those tiresome children were more likely to spot something amiss than he was, standing like a statue in front of the tea tent! As Julian, Daisy, Pip and Ern suddenly wandered into view he was struck with a sudden brainwave. He was in charge, wasn't he? So where was the problem in sending P.C. Ackerley off for a while? Then he, Goon, would be free to wander around and have a look for those two men himself! He would be completely unencumbered by this young buffoon of an officer!

"Hallo, Mr. Goon!" said Julian, Daisy and Pip, coming over. Ern trailed slightly behind them, having been dead against the idea of approaching in the first place.

"Hallo, Uncle," he murmured ruefully.

"Ho, so you're here too, are you Ern?" Mr. Goon said, drawing himself up in his usual pompus manner. He was still feeling put out after his encounter with Fatty, and was glad to have a conversation with someone who rarely answered back. Ern didn't have half of Fatty's cheek, and Goon was very glad about it!

"Yes, Uncle," Ern replied, meekly.

"See that you behave yourself then," said Mr. Goon.

"Yes, Uncle," said Ern again.

"Do you get a lot of crime happening outside the tea tent, Mr. Goon?" asked Julian, solemnly. "Is that why you've got two officers on the job?"

"It's very important to have policeman on the watch outside the tea tent, Julian," said Pip, playing along, "what with all those scone thieves hanging about!"

All four children and P.C. Ackerley laughed. Mr. Goon resisted the temptation to cuff Ackerley over the head for joining in. He was encouraging these young scallywags in their mocking of the law, that was what he was doing!

"It's a central point," spat Mr. Goon in reply. "You can see the majority of the field from here, which is why it's a very good place for officers of the law to stand. Now get on with you, you're wasting police time, that's what you're doing!"

Reluctantly, but still chuckling, the four moved off. Goon at once seized his opportunity.

"You know, P.C. Ackerley," he began, choosing his words carefully so that it seemed as though the idea had only just occurred to him, "I think that boy was right. Perhaps it is a bit unneccessary for two of us to be standing here. Why don't you go and follow those children, and I'll remain?"

"Follow the children?" P.C. Ackerley repeated, blankly. "But why?"

"Because they're nosy, troublesome meddlers, that's why! Always poking their noses in where they're not wanted!" Goon snarled, his anger at the Find-Outers and friends getting the better of him.

"Why, P.C. Goon, they're only children!" reasoned P.C. Ackerley, amazed at his colleague's sudden rage. "They've been very polite and they're simply here for a day out at the fair! There's nothing against the law in that! What harm can they possibly do?"

"Gah!" said Goon, the only word he felt fully justified the hundreds of ideas that sprang to mind at this question. "You'll do as you're told, P.C. Ackerley! I'm in charge here, remember? And I'm telling you to follow those children! Make a note of where they go and what they're up to at all times! And when they leave, you're to report back to me with your findings!"

"But-" P.C. Ackerley started to object, looking thoroughly bewildered.

"Your duty, P.C. Ackerley!" prompted Mr. Goon.

"Yes, sir," sighed Ackerley, and still looking puzzled, he wandered off in the direction of the four children.

Goon also sighed, feeling immensely satisfied. Really, he had been quite clever to come up with a plan that killed three birds with one stone! He was now at perfect liberty to do his own sleuthing, had got rid of the annoying Ackerley, and would know all about the movements of his rival detectives at the end of the day! He would also be able to question Ern himself that evening if Ackerley's account wasn't satisfactory. And to think that the Chief Superintendent had accused him of going off on wild tangents! Gah! Goon was an excellent officer and this just proved it! Rearranging his helmet on his head majestically, Mr. Goon strode off in search of something strange. If only he could be the one to find those elusive two men first! How Chief Superintendent Jenks would regret those words then!


	14. Chapter 14

Back with another chapter! Thanks for all the positive comments, particularly about P.C. Ackerley! Not sure yet how big a part he'll play but I wanted to put my own stamp on things a bit with my own character! Hope you enjoy! :)

Two hours later, Bets was feeling very frustrated indeed. She, George and Fatty had circled the field three times and not once had they spotted anything even slightly suspicious! Now she stood in the queue for the ice cream van, still looking around for a sign of anything unusual. She suddenly folded her arms and huffed impatiently, much to the alarm of the small boy standing behind her. It was so frustrating to have worked out the most important clue of the whole mystery and to have got no further! For the first time, Bets began to doubt herself. What if the note hadn't referred to the travelling fair at all? What if it was simply a coincidence? She wondered whether Fatty ought to have suggested that a few of them remained behind in Peterswood, just in case. Anne had been more than happy to stay with Buster and Timmy, and if Anne had stayed then George surely would have done too. Bets scowled at this thought. She liked George, but she felt very much as though her time with Fatty was being spoilt by the new girl that Fatty seemed to like so much!

It was at this point that a thought occurred to her. Fatty had chuckled at Bets' restlessness as they had settled down in a shady spot, and had sent her off for ice creams as something to do. But what if Fatty hadn't been entirely truthful? What if he had sent her off out of the way so he could spend some time with George? Bets pursed her lips and frowned so heavily that the ice cream man asked her if she was quite all right.

"Oh yes, thank you! Three ice creams please," said Bets, suddenly becoming cheerful once more. She was being silly, she knew! If there was one thing Fatty was above all others it was honest! He would never send her off under false pretences and it was naughty of her to have even thought of such a thing! She scolded herself and feeling slightly guilty but good-natured again, she trotted off back to the other two, ice creams in hand.

Fatty and George had been discussing the mystery during Bets' absence, sitting on the grass under a tall tree.

"I can't help thinking whether we might have read the note wrongly," George suggested for the third time.

"It's certainly possible," replied Fatty, "but it's only just gone one o'clock, after all. The fair doesn't close until four. We've still got plenty of time to spot something mysterious."

"It's so wonderful to be in the middle of an adventure again!" sighed George happily, hugging her knees to her chest. Her eyes sparkled with excitement in the sunlight as she turned to look at Fatty. He grinned back at her as he met her gaze.

"Hallo, you've got a woodlouse in your hair, George!" said Fatty suddenly, sitting up and leaning over to pick it out. George sat quite still as he removed the offending bug, and together they watched it scuttle across the grass. Bets' approach went quite unnoticed until she sat down next to her two friends, thrusting George's ice cream at her rather crossly.

"Thanks," said George, wondering if something had happened to Bets to irritate her so.

"Thanks, Bets," said Fatty, accepting his ice cream. "You really are a wonder! I do hope your trip to the ice cream van has calmed you down a bit, you hot-headed little thing!"

A slight smile returned to Bets' face at this, but she was still rather quiet as the other two began to go over the contents of the note once more. She had witnessed the woodlouse incident as she had crossed the field, and she couldn't help feeling that she had been replaced in Fatty's affections. She knew he had always had a soft spot for her, and it made her feel rather downhearted to think that he had now transferred it to George. It didn't even occur to poor Bets that Fatty's 'soft spot' for George might be of a different kind entirely!

There was no time to ponder the matter further, however, as at that moment three figures could be seen tearing excitedly into view. It wasn't long before Anne, Dick and Larry had drawn up beside their friends, panting heavily. Anne's hat fell off of her head onto the grass, where it went quite unnoticed.

"George, Fatty, Bets!" cried Anne, positively beaming through her shortage of breath. "You'll never guess what we've found!"

"What?!" cried the other three at once, sitting up.

"They're setting up some more stalls at the far end of the field," said Dick, sitting down beside his cousin and clutching a stitch in his side. "And what do you think the name above the apple bobbing reads?"

The other three looked at one another, completely nonplussed. They couldn't even begin to think! Suddenly, Bets let out a high-pitched scream that made them all jump.

"Goodness, Bets!" cried Larry, putting his fingers to his ear. "Couldn't you have come to a realisation without deafening us?"

"But I know, Larry, I know!" said Bets, still squealing. "It's Jimbo!"

"Quite right!" grinned Dick.

"Jimbo's Apple Bobbing!" cried Anne, rather loudly. George hushed her at once, for there were quite a few other people in the vicinity.

"George is right, Anne," said Fatty, suddenly looking more serious. "We don't want to draw attention to ourselves more than we can help. But golly, you three, what a find!"

"This must mean we were right about the fair, after all!" cried George.

"It seems a pretty rum coincidence, I must admit," admitted Fatty, grinning.

"What do we do next, Fatty?" Bets asked, no longer restless but eager and alert.

"I rather think we ought to find the others," said Fatty. "They should share in this new information. I don't suppose you saw them on your way over here?"

"We haven't seen them all day," replied Anne.

"I don't think it'll be too difficult to find them," piped up Dick, pointing a finger to his right, where the other four children could be seen making their way over to the large tree.

"Another piece of luck!" said Fatty. "Things seem to be looking up for us now!"

"I say, you timed that very well indeed!" said Larry, clapping Pip on the back.

"Have you discovered something?" Daisy asked at once, noticing the flushed and eager faces surrounding her.

It wasn't long before, she, Pip, Julian and Ern had been filled in on the appearance of Jimbo's apple bobbing stall. They looked at one another in astonishment, just as pleased and excited as the other six at this sudden development after a long morning of little progress. There was a small silence as each of the Five and Find-Outers collected their thoughts.

"How long were you standing by the stall?" Fatty asked suddenly, looking at Larry and the others.

"About twenty minutes," Larry shrugged. "Why?"

"Anne had three goes at the apple bobbing," said Dick. "We thought it'd seem less suspicious if we took part."

"The man was horrid!" added Anne, frowning. "I wanted to try a fourth time to give the others the chance to see if either of the men were anywhere nearby, but he scowled at me so dreadfully that we left at once!"

"He wasn't the pleasantest of men," chuckled Dick. "Anne was quite afraid!"

"I wasn't afraid!" Anne retorted at once. "I just didn't like the look of him, that's all!"

"Are you afraid we've made ourselves look suspicious to him, Fatty?" Larry asked, in an attempt to head off the bickering.

"I don't think so," said Fatty, considering. "It seems perfectly natural that you should want to bob for apples at an apple bobbing stall! The next step is that we need to keep an eye on this man, however. Ern's two gentlemen on the train knew it was Jimbo they needed to find, after all."

"It would be a mistake for us to go back, Fatty," said Dick. "We'll only draw attention to ourselves!"

"Ooh, can I go, Fatty?" Bets asked suddenly, leaping up. "You, me and George could wander over there!"

"You're such a baby, Bets," scoffed Pip, frowning at his younger sister. "If you're going to squeal like that you'll give the game away in half a minute!"

Bets opened her mouth indignantly to retort, but Fatty cut her off. "Less of the brotherly, sisterly bickering if you please, Find-Outers! And Five ought to remember that, as well! As it happens, Bets, Pip is right. This calls for somebody a bit less excitable, I think!"

Bets looked rather disappointed but she readily agreed. If that was what Fatty thought best then she certainly wasn't going to argue!

"I rather think you four should go," said Fatty, gesturing to Pip, Daisy, Ern and Julian. "With Julian in charge, I'm sure you'll do a super job of keeping watch without appearing to hang about suspiciously."

Julian looked rather pleased to be referred to like this, but he at once pointed out the flaw in this plan. "It can't be us, Fatty! We've had a shadow following us around all day!"

He gestured over his shoulder and the children looked. P.C. Ackerley was standing a little way off, scribbling in his notepad a little too furiously to seem natural. He glanced up once, noticed the children staring and hastily resumed his scribbling, his cheeks slightly pink.

"We think Goon set him on our tail," said Pip.

"Why would Goon have him follow you all day?" asked George, puzzled.

"I think he might be wanting to keep an eye on me," said Ern, shuffling his feet. "I am his nephew, after all. I expect he'll be lying in wait to pump me for information as soon as I get home."

"Well, it wouldn't be the first time Goon's tailed us," said Fatty. "And Ern, you jolly well make sure you don't tell him a thing!"

"Yes, Fatty," said Ern meekly, hoping he would be able to withhold the day's events from his snooping uncle successfully. He knew he wasn't always the most reliable at keeping quiet, but he didn't want to let Fatty down one bit!

"I vote we stick to the plan," said Fatty, taking control as always. "Julian, Pip, Daisy and Ern will go to the other end of the field and keep an eye on Anne's friend, Jimbo. Bets, George and I will go over and strike up a conversation with P.C. Ackerley. With any luck, we'll be able to distract him from his task of shadowing you four."

"What about us, Fatty?" asked Anne, gesturing to herself, Dick and Larry.

"You three would do well to keep an eye on Mr. Goon," grinned Fatty. "I'll bet my right hand he's sent Ackerley off so he can have a snoop round himself. So we shall turn the tables on him well and truly! Where he thought he was keeping tabs on us, we'll be keeping tabs on him, see?"

The others laughed at this. Even the Famous Five had come to very much enjoy getting one over on the irksome Mr. Goon! It was a cheerful and determined troupe of children that went their separate ways that afternoon, each full of excitement at their individual task in hand. It was super to be back on track again after a wasted morning! Finally, it seemed as though they would be getting somewhere with this mysterious adventure!

So excited was Ern as he went off with Julian, Daisy and Pip that he began scribbling furiously in his notebook as he went along, in a comical unintentional echo of P.C. Ackerley. He was determined not to forget anything and the only way to do that was to write it all down! So absorbed was he in his details of the apple bobbing that he walked straight into a person coming the other way.

"Sorry," said Ern, glancing up briefly before returning to his hasty notes. Dotting the end of his sentence ferociously, he stuffed his notebook back into his pocket and hurried after the others to the other end of the field. Somebody slightly more observant than Ern might have noticed that the man he had bumped into was wearing a beige suit. They might also have noticed that he stood staring thoughtfully after Ern's retreating back, before hurrying off in the opposite direction. As it was, however, the first man from the train slipped off back up the field quite unnoticed.


End file.
